So Weird:Returning Home
by sissiewest
Summary: It's been 6 yrs since Fi's been home. 6 yrs of love & pain, betrayal &loss, secrets & lies and her family knows nothing. She's going home but is it business or pleasure or both? As her life gets so weird and so dangerous, how will she keep her secrets?
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I don't own any of So Weird- the show, characters, previous plotlines, etc. I mean no infringement, all rights and ownership belong to Disney.**

**And please, please, please, review =) It will be MUCH appreciated.  
**

Fi let her robe fall to the ground and slipped into her favorite bra and panties- it's amazing what good undergarments can do for a girls confidence, and today she needed all the confidence she could get. With a sigh, Fi flipped her head over and began to towel dry her hair. Finally satisfied that her hair had gone from dripping to only slightly damp, she flipped her head back up, a very long tangled mass of dark blue hair falling down her back. With another sigh, Fi walked over to her full length mirror and, nervously twirling a piece of her very blue hair, began examining herself.

-_It's been a long time, maybe the blue's too much… But I like the blue, but what if they don't like the blue… I could dye it back, I should have time but even then_- fiddling nervously with her tongue ring, Fi ran her fingers over the many bits of metal that ran down her ears. One hand moved down, anxiously pulling on her belly button ring while she stared pointedly at her nose ring and snake eyes- _Well, I could remove a few piercings… but they could close up…. And they'd still see the holes on my face… though I could make them not see but… my tattoos, I won't do that to them but…_- Fi stared helplessly at herself in the mirror. Outside of the hair and piercings, she also had numerous ancient symbols and ruins tattooed over her body. There were also the life sized tattooed Sai blades on her arms, the hilts starting on her palms, and the blade going nearly to her elbow. Not to mention the small crossed Sai blades on the back of her neck and the tattooed charm bracelet on her ankle- a tattoo charm for all the important events in her life- _But how much am I willing to change… I am a grown woman with every right to decorate myself in the way I like… But what if they don't like it, it's been so long…_-

A throat cleared somewhere near the window. Forcing down an embarrassed blush, Fi calmly turned in the direction of the noise and found it crouched on her windowsill. He wasn't suppose to be here, she didn't want him here, but she found that a little difficult to remember as she took in his dark eyes and scruffy goatee, the chin length dark hair curling into his face, the deep tan that worked so well with the muscles that were currently straining against his shirt, the intriguing snake tattoos that crawled up his arms- he never would tell her what they were for.

-_I don't want him here, I don't want him here, I don't want him here_- she thought over and over again like a mantra.

"Am I interrupting something," he smiled wickedly, hopping to the floor and straightening to his full six-foot-five height.

"My peace of mind," she answered disdainfully, walking with a forced leisure to where she had dropped her robe.

"That's not a nice greeting."

"You're not supposed to be here," she said, securely tying the robe and sitting at her vanity.

"Oh come now, love, you don't mean that," he reasoned.

"Actually, I do," she insisted, combing out her hair. "Or did I not make my point clearly last time?"

"No it was quite clear," he assured, gently fingering the remains of a burn on his neck. "I just-"

But, whatever he was about to say, Fi never found out for she began to blow dry her hair. Frustrated, he sat next to her on her long vanity seat.

When she finally finished and began brushing her hair again, she snapped, "I don't care why you're here, just go!"

"What's wrong, Fi?"

"Nothing, I'm fine."

"No, you're not," he informed her plucking the brush from her small hands and turning her to face him. "What is it?"

"It's been so long," she confided, shaking her head. She knew she was caving to him but she couldn't seem to help it, "Dorian, the last time I saw any of them was Thanksgiving, when I was fifteen. I've changed so much."

"Of course you have, and they won't be expecting you to be the same."

"But what if they are? What if they don't like me as I am now?"

"Fi, I've read some of the emails, they adore you."

"But-"

"Ssshhh," he said cupping the side of her face and leaning forward.

-_Oh God! I should pull back…. Push him back? Tell him to go? I should-_

But she didn't. She leaned forward, and let him kiss her. Letting her hands get lost in his hair she felt herself relax as he wrapped his arms around her tight, pulling her close. She felt a warm tight sensation in her stomach as his tongue began to peak into her mouth. She started guiding his hand into the opening of her robe when reason returned. Fi pushed herself away, stumbling off the vanity seat.

"You should go."

"Fi,-"

"Now."

"Fiona?"

"Please?" She asked, her voice pleading.

"Alright," he agreed reluctantly, hopping agilely onto the window ledge. "But you know Fi, you can't fight us."

"Watch me," she snarled, her eyes going cold with a fierce determination.

"I love you," he sighed, hopping out the window.

Stomping over, Fi slammed it shut.

-_He has no right! How could he?_- she thought angrily, returning to her vanity to apply her makeup, which mostly consisted of large amounts of black eyeliner- _How could I?_-

Finally finished, with her suitcases by the door, Fi pulled on her favorite skin tight, dark wash jeans. She carefully pulled on the dark blue short sleeve shirt. It was her favorite with a scoop neck and a loose blousing fit to middle of her stomach where it switched to being skin tight, ending at the top of her thighs. The back was her favorite part as it was covered in artistically designed cut outs that showed more skin then material. She pulled on a pair of black stiletto boots that went to just above her knees and put on the copious amounts of jewelry she had laid out. Finally ready, Fi took one last look in the mirror and sighed as she slipped into her leather jacket. Struggling, Fi managed to get luggage downstairs just as the taxi cab pulled up.

As the driver loaded the last of her luggage, Fi closed and locked the door of her London home. She'd be back, she just didn't know when. Climbing into the taxi, Fi wrapped a black scarf around her neck and fought off a chill.

"Where to, miss?"

"Heathrow, please."

"Where're you visiting? If you don't mind my asking."

"The States, to see my family."

"Well that'll be nice. How long's it been since you been home, then?'

"Six years."

* * *

"Hi everyone, I ended up catching an earlier connecting flight so I'll just catch a taxi home. See ya all, soon," said Fi, hanging up the phone, hoping her message sounded cheery, hoping they got her message.

She struggled outside with her luggage, and, after several attempts, managed to flag down a taxi.

"Hope Springs, please?" she asked, once her suitcases were loaded and she had buckled.

"Yes ma'am."

Settling back for the long ride, Fi pulled out her laptop hoping to get some of the work she was behind on done. After about twenty minutes, she dug around in her bag for her glasses with a sigh, when she noticed a txt message.

-Okay, baby, we'll see you when you get here- mom

_-They're you're family, stop freaking out!_-she admonished herself, trying to ignore the twisting feeling in her stomach.


	2. Chapter 2

The taxi cab pulled into the driveway of the old log house her mom had re-purchased a few years back. Fi tried to push down the feeling of panic that was rising. She was home, home is good and safe, she should be thrilled, or, at the least, not fighting off a panic attack.

She stepped out of the taxi just as Ned came around the side of the house. He was looking down as he walked so he hadn't seen her yet. She felt her breath catch in her throat; he was so close to her.

-_Oh God, oh God, oh God, oh God! Breathe, and say something. I need to say something_-

"Ned?"

He stopped and looked up. His eyes widened in surprise as he recognized the woman standing in front of him.

"Fiona?" he asked but without waiting for an answer he closed the distance and pulled her into a rib crushing bear hug that left her feet dangling a good foot off the ground. "Welcome home, honey."

Fi felt herself relaxing into the hug. She was home; everything was going to be okay.

"Dad?" came Clue's voice as he too rounded the corner. He frowned in confusion when he saw his dad and the young woman but then, "Fi!"

Just as Ned put Fi back on her feet, she found herself being spun around in another Rib crushing hug from Clue. Apparently, she was not going to get any regular hugs today and that was okay with her. Finally placing her back down, Clue, joined by Ned, looked her up and down.

"Wow Fi, you look a lot different than I remember."

"You look like you're the one who should be in a band not Molly," added Ned.

"Yea, it does get me some stares," she smiled, nervously twirling a piece of hair.

"Blue hair will do that."

Fi turned around and smiled, "Irene."

The two women embraced shortly and then Irene pulled back an arms length, looking her over.

"Hey, guys? Where is everyone?"

"We're out front, Carey."

"Fi, is that you?"

"Come and find out."

While waiting, Fi noticed the driver leaning impatiently against the taxi and rushed over to pay him. As the driver pulled away, Fi turned back around and right into Carey.

"Welcome back," he smiled, wrapping her into a hug.

His wasn't bone crushing but it was tight… secure. He also didn't seem to want to let go. Finally he released her and smirking, pulled playfully at a piece of her hair.

"Your mom's going to be so mad she missed your arrival," interrupted Irene. "But she and Will ran to the store, she thought she had a little more time."

"Who's Will," Fi asked and watched everyone's face fall.

"She didn't tell you?" asked a shocked Ned.

"Tell me what? Who's Will?"

"Well…"

"Her fiancé."

Fi turned to see Jack standing on the porch with Gabe and Annie.

Fiance?" Fi repeated in shock.

"Yep," Jack replied, making his way towards Fi, Gabe following. "For about three months now."

"She never mentioned it," Fi stated, sounding slightly hurt but making her way towards Jack as well.

"I think she wanted to tell you in person," he explained, pulling her into a big hug. "Welcome home, Little Sis."

"Thanks, Big Bro," she smiled, not having realized how much she had missed her straight laced brother.

Finally he pulled away and looked her over, "Yep, weird as ever."

-_You have no idea_- she thought, but instead turned to Gabe, "Let me see it?"

Smiling, Gabe gladly held out her left hand.

"It's beautiful," exclaimed Fi, "Who would have thought my brother would have such good taste in engagement rings."

"He does, doesn't he?" Gabe smiled, hugging Fi.

"Congratulations, you guys," Fi smiled but then looked past them to where Annie stood on the porch.

Then to the surprise of everyone there, the two girls raced toward each other, colliding in a hug. The family looked on in confusion as two girls who had only met in person twice hung onto each other like long lost sister. Finally pulling away, they heard Ned.

"Fi, why don't you go in? We'll get your luggage. Come on boys."

The two girls made there way into the house, they're arms wrapped around each other. She was home, and everything was going to be okay. She was different, but everything was going to be okay. She was home

"Fi," said Annie, sounding nervous, "you should know, the Will your mom's engaged to is Will _Dysin_."

* * *

Fi was sitting in the kitchen when she heard her.

"Fi! Fiona!"

"Mom!" she called back, jumping out of her seat and racing to the front door. "Mom!"

The two women collided on the porch, toppling each other but refusing to let go.

"Oh, baby, I've missed you so much!" exclaimed Molly, holding on desperately to the daughter she hadn't seen in six years. "I am never letting you out of my sight again!"

Fi didn't comment but buried her head into Molly's shoulder as she realized just how much she had missed her mother. She was also trying desperately to hold back the tears that wanted to flow. All the pain and tragedy that had filled her life over the past few years, all the pain and tragedy she thought she had buried deep, was fighting to break free as she hung onto to her mother. She couldn't let it out, she wouldn't, especially here, especially when she wouldn't be able to explain it to her family, when she wasn't allowed to. Desperately pulling herself together, Fi forced herself to focus on the joy of being reunited with her family not on the pain of a past she couldn't change. When they heard the front door shut, the two women pulled back, but still held onto each other's hands, and looked to discover themselves alone.

"Oh my God," said Molly as she looked over her daughter.

"Yea," answered Fi, looking nervous "I've changed a bit."

"Yea," Molly smiled, cupping her daughter's face, "But you're still you."

"You think?" asked Fi, she so desperately wanted to believe it was true, but part of her wouldn't believe it.

"Yea, I do," Molly smiled again as she reassured her daughter. "And you know what? I like the hair. The tattoos and piercings are going to take a little getting use to."

"Oh Mom," Fi couldn't keep the smile off her face as she threw her arms back around Molly.

"Oh baby, you've grown up so much. I've missed you so much."

As the door opened, the two women turned to see a man standing there.

"Oh, Fi," said her mom, sounding nervous and guilty, "this is William Dysin, my um.."

"Fiance?"

"How did you know?"

"Jack told me."

"Oh. I would have told you, Fi, I just couldn't figure out how."

"It's fine, really," Fi assured her mom, trying to believe that herself. Then turning and holding out a hand she said, "It's nice to meet you."

Taking her hand and, to her surprise, pulling her to her feet he said, "It's nice to finally meet you, as well."

As he helped Molly up, Fi couldn't shake the feeling that he wasn't referring to meeting his future step-daughter.

"Ned's getting things started inside; I'm going to get the stuff from the car."

"Alright, we'll see you inside," said Molly.

"Actually," offered Fi, "I'll give you hand."

"Thanks."

Once they were out of earshot Fi said, "Mr. Dysin-"

"Call me Will. At least, around the family," he smiled, knowing what she was going to ask.

"Alright, _Will_, do you love my mother or is this just an assignment?"

"I do care for your mother, Fi."

"That doesn't answer my question."

"That's all you're going to get. It's classified."

"My clearance-"

"Is impressive but not all encompassing. You're simply going to have to accept it," he said. Then smiling, as if he could see the debate taking place inside her head, continued, "Or have you forgotten your loyalties?"

"Have I _ever_ forgotten them," she demanded angrily, hands on her hips.

"No," he said, a look of pity on his face, "you haven't."

"We should get the groceries inside," she said cheerfully, as if their conversation had never taken place and by the time they reached the house she had successfully buried her emotions.

"You've decided to stay?"

"For now, at least," answered Fi, who was unpacking.

"Oh," replied an obviously disappointed Molly.

"Mom, I'm twenty-one, I can't just move back home. Besides," explained Fi, eyeing Annie's bed, "I'm use to my own space."

"Yea, I know," she conceded. "Do you need any help?"

"I'm good, thanks though."

"Fi, are you okay?"

"Yea, I'm fine," she smiled, hoping Molly would be assuaged and let it drop.

"Really? Because you don't seem so fine."

"Probably just jet lag," shrugged Fi with another smile.

"Yea, probably," Molly conceded, sitting on the bed. "So at dinner, you told Clue you didn't have a boyfriend?"

"Yea, why?"

"Well, I thought you were seeing Dorian? I mean, you and I never talked about it much, but your aunt said you guys were pretty serious?"

"We were," answered Fi, mentally cursing her aunt. "And now we're not."

"What happened?"

"Irreconcilable differences," she answered tersely.

"Fi," said Molly, chidingly.

"I'm sorry, mom, I just… I don't know," she sighed, running her hands through her hair.

"I'm sorry, baby. You guys were together for a while, weren't you?"

"Five years," Fi answered softly.

"Oh, baby," said Molly understandingly, tucking a piece of hair behind Fi's ear. "I'm sorry."

"Yea, well, it was it was a few months ago, and I'm fine, really," assured Fi, not certain who she was trying to convince.

Sensing the topic was now closed, Molly said, "You didn't bring your guitar with you?"

"No, I left it at ho- in London," answered Fi, hoping Molly didn't notice the slip. "I haven't really been playing much, so I didn't see the point. Plus, I'll probably be swamped with the new office launch anyway."

"Maybe, but your in a musician's house now, you might just find you have a change of heart. Besides, it's in your blood, which is why," Molly trailed off and standing up went into the hall.

"Mom?" Fi called after her.

A moment later Molly came back in holding a guitar, "I want you to have this, and not just why you're here, I want you to keep it, permanently."

"Daddy's guitar?" said Fi, sounding hopeful and sad at the same time and little like her old self.

"You two are so much alike," said Molly, handing the instrument to her daughter, "It belongs with you, and, besides, I have to let the past go, I'm starting a new life."

Fi, forced herself to look up at her mom, "You love him?"

"Yea, baby, I do."

"And you're happy?"

"Happier than I've been in a long time."

"Good," she said, setting the guitar on her bed. Then, giving her mom a hug continued, "I'm glad you found him."

"Me too, baby, me too. Well, I'll let you finish up here, night Fi."

"Night," said Fi, picking her father's guitar back up. "Mom?"

"Yea," answered Molly, turning back around.

"Thanks."

"Your welcome, baby."

"I'm so happy to have her home."

"I can tell," smiled Will.

"I just wish she'd tell me what's wrong."

"Wrong? Molly, she's home, and safe, and happy. What could possibly be wrong?"

"But she isn't happy, even though she insists she's fine. And in some ways I think London is more her home now," answered Molly sadly. "And she's too thin. Did you see her at dinner, she hardly ate anything."

"Molly, she's a big girl, if she says she fine, you'll just have to leave it alone for now."

"I know," she sighed

"Don't worry. Whatever it is, she'll come to you when she's ready," he assured, though he knew there were things Fi could never tell Molly about.

"You're right," she smiled, kissing him goodnight.


	3. Chapter 3

"Arrie!" Fi called, racing through the forest towards her twin's screams.

Careless of the branches that scratched her arms and face, Fi threw curses, withering the vines that tried to impede her. She had to hurry, Arrie's cries of pain were becoming more desperate, she was running out of time. Frantic, Fi called for more speed. As she raced past blurring branches, she started to make out a clearing up ahead. That was it. If she squinted she could just make out Arrie, broken and bleeding but alive, tied to a smoking pyre.

"Fi! Help me!" came the desperate, pain filled cry.

With a final burst of speed Fi stumbled into the clearing, and… Arrie was gone. Instead, there was a lone man in a cape with the hood pulled low.

"Where is she?" Fi demanded, trying to ignore the exhaustion that wanted to pull her into unconsciousness. "What did you do?"

There was no answer, just a chilling hissing sound. Fi watched in horror as the figure began to stretch taller, the bottom of the cape becoming longer like a train, the hood growing both wider and longer. Fi forced herself to stand her ground, even as the black material of the cape turned shiny like scales and holes in the hood ripped open to reveal blood red eyes. Fi fought her fear as she found herself face to face with an unnaturally large snake.

"By my blood, let me pass!" she ordered.

The snake paused a moment as if considering but then shot forward. Fi dived out of the way just before the snake swallowed her whole, and rolled into a crouched position. Concentrating, Fi felt the Sai tattoos come to life in her hands. Gripping the now corporal weapons, it was her turn to lunge. Striking out, she managed to drag one of the blades along the creatures face, leaving a severe burn. Without leaving it time to recover, Fi twirled back around dragging the weapon across one of the serpents eyes, turning it to ice. The second attack, though, came at a price. Before she could move out of its striking distance, the enraged beast snapped, catching her up in its mouth, impaling her with both its long fangs. Fi, desperately trying to ignore the pain, angrily brought both the blunt ended blades down into the creature, piercing it's face. Before it could react, she uttered an ancient and dangerous curse, and watched as poison leaked from the Sai and into the great snake.

It opened it's mouth in pain, pulling its sharp teeth out of Fi but also causing her to fall the ten feet to the ground. Instinctively, she rolled out of the creatures reach. As the serpent flopped to the ground, wreathing in pain, Fi covered the gaping wounds left by her foe with her hands and uttered a few words that were not English. The injuries didn't heal but the bleeding slowed considerably, and the poison seemed nullified. As the creature died, Fi ripped up her sleeves and tied them together to make a jury-rigged bandage, which she wrapped around the holes in her stomach. Once certain the beast was dead, Fi picked up her Sai blades and, concentrating, melded them back into the tattoos.

As she left the clearing, Fi found herself no longer in the woods but in an abandoned warehouse. The screaming was back.

"Arrie!" she called out desperately and, trying to ignore the almost debilitating pain in her abdomen, burst through the only door in the room.

Fi found herself in a stairwell, and started going up. She ran, and ran, and ran, but never seemed to get any closer. It was as if the stairs were infinite.

"Let me in!" she screamed, sounding slightly deranged.

Suddenly, she ran straight into a door that had appeared at the top of the flight of stairs she was currently on. Uncaring of the egg size bump growing on her concussed forehead, Fi wrenched the door open.

The smoke was horrific, it burned so badly. But Fi entered anyway, calling out for her dying twin. Arrie didn't respond to her calls but simply cried out in agony. Not knowing what else to do, Fi cast her arms wide and, as she mumbled under her breath, the smoke began to clear along with most of Fi's remaining energy. Seeing a mass up ahead, she stumbled for it. She reached it, to find a charred pyre and the skeleton of a girl, her twin. She had failed. Fi fell to her knees trying to fight the tears that wanted to overwhelm her.

"I'm Sorry."

Fi looked up to see Dorian standing over her.

"I'm going to kill you," she promised.

Fi woke with start, pushing sweat drenched hair out of her face. She made her way to the bathroom, and splashed her face with cold water.

-_It was just a dream. It all happened months ago… I need to let this go, it's over_-

With shaking hands, Fi reached for her toothbrush hoping to get the taste of smoke out of her mouth.

Still feeling shaken, she made her way back to her bed. She wasn't sure how she was going to fall back to sleep, when she noticed a txt message. She picked it up.

-_Dorian, great_-

Curiosity and concern getting the better of her, she opened it.

I hope that everything worked out with the family, love. I miss you already… Give me a ring sometime- Dorian.

She desperately wanted to call him, right that minute, and she hated herself for it- almost as much as she hated Dorian. Determined, she put the phone back down, and lay down. After a few minutes of lying there restless, she sat back up knowing what she wanted, needed to do. She knew she probably shouldn't, but she had waited so long already. She had to at least try. Moving quietly so as not to wake Annie, Fi made her way to the closet and pulled out a bag of candles, a lighter, and, after a moments hesitation, her cigarettes. She knew she needed to kick the habit but lately the nicotine was all that seemed to get her through her bad days… or nights. In the past six months she had went from maybe a cigarette a week to at least one or two a day, and she hadn't had one since she had left England that morning.

* * *

Fi sat by an open window in the attic, finishing off her third cigarette. After this one she really needed to get going, she was just wasting time. Putting out the butt of the cigarette, Fi stood and grabbed the lighter. First she stopped in front of the door and placed her hand flat on it.

"Not a sound escape beyond this point,

As my domain, this room I anoint."

The door glowed a moment and Fi felt the tingle of her magic obeying. Satisfied, Fi set the candles up in the outline of a pentagram and lit each one. Then, focusing her mind on Arrie, she closed her eyes.

"Life and death shall not divide,

As I bid your spirit ride,

Pass the grave at my behest,

To settle afore me to rest."

Fi, hoping greatly, opened her eyes, and found nothing. Fighting down her bitter disappointment and sudden tiredness, she made her way to the window to have another cigarette.

"You're playing a dangerous game Fiona, even one as powerful as you needs to be careful."

"Daddy?" she gasped, turning around.

And there he was, becoming corporeal as he stepped out of the pentagram.

"Hi, baby," he smiled, holding out his arms.

She ran to him. The last time she had seen her father he had been spirit, and she had been fourteen. This time he was solid, and she held on.

"Arrie is at peace, Fi, it wasn't fair of you to try and summon her."

"I know, I just…"

"Missed her?"

"Terribly."

"You've lost so much, had to endure so much, more than someone your age should have had to but you're stronger for it Fiona, it makes you who you are."

"What if I don't like who I am?"

"Change what you can, and learn to accept what you can't."

"I'm just so tired of accepting things, Daddy, it's not fair," she complained, knowing she sounded petulant.

"It's not, but you don't have much choice do you? I can't stay much longer, so-"

"But, you've barely been here any time at all. Can't you stay a little longer?" she pleaded, wrapping her arms around him again.

"I wish I could baby," he said, hugging her back. "Which is why you need to listen, Necromancy is very dangerous! Even the best of your kind, are cautious of it. Promise me, you won't do something like this again unless it is an absolute emergency."

"But-"

"Promise me, Fiona!"

"I promise," she agreed, reluctantly.

"Good," he said, pulling back and kissing her on the head. Then stepping back into the pentagram once again, he said, "Send me back."

Fi hesitated a moment before walking over to a candle and kneeling down, then looking up one last time, said "Bye, daddy."

"Bye, baby."

She blew out the candle, and he faded away. After extinguishing the rest, Fi made her way back over to the window for another cigarette, feeling even more restless than before she had come up, despite the exhaustion she felt from using so much magic.


	4. Chapter 4

Fi stood up from her desk and tried not to smile as she caught her reflection- business professional meets punk rock. She always found it funny that her company didn't care that she had blue hair, face piercings, and tattoos (though most of those were 'business' related) as long as she was dressed properly. Still smiling, she made her way downstairs and to one of the back entrances. She had been home for a little under a month, and there were still some adjustments. She had forgotten what it meant to live with a family. She was adjusting, slowly. Things were still off with her mom, though. Molly knew she was keeping things, but there was nothing she could do, there were parts of Fi's life her mom could never know about. She knew when she came home they wouldn't have the same relationship but that didn't stop it from being hard.

"Miss Phillips?"

"Yes, Richard?" said Fi cringing as she turned to one of the new hires.

He was supposed to be training to be an assistant but he was really just a front man, meant to work in the company's more 'normal' departments. For now though, she was stuck with him as her second assistant, and he was irritatingly over eager.

"I've finished the categorizing Jessa asked me to see to."

"Alright?"

"Well I was just heading back up to see what else I could do."

"Well, good. I won't get in your way, then," said Fi, starting to turn.

"Uh, miss Phillips?"

"Fi, Richard. Please call me Fi."

"Oh, I couldn't do that it would be unprofessional."

"Of course…What did you need me for Richard?"

"Oh right," he smiled, "Well like I said, I was heading back up, when I saw you."

"… Yes, so what can I help you with?" Fi prodded, fighting the urge to yell.

"Oh, well, I thought I'd see what I can help you with, directly."

"Richard," said Fi, suppressing a sigh, "You are a second assistant. You report to Jessa, the first assistant, not to me."

"Oh, I know, Miss Phillips."

"… Alright then, you should probably head up to Jessa, see what she needs you to do."

"Yes, Miss Phillips, just let me know if you ever need anything, ever," he informed her, heading toward an elevator.

"I'm sorry, gentleman," said Fi, turning to the men waiting by the back entrance.

"Are you Miss Fiona Phillips?"

"Yes, is it all here, or will you be making a second trip?"

"Nope, we got it all in one… Ma'am."

"Good, if you and your men will grab a load, I'll show you where to load it."

The man grunted his agreement, and headed out to the truck. It took a little while but eventually, they came back carrying a number of heavy boxes.

"Follow me, gentleman," she instructed, leading them into a side hall, and eventually into a long room with a row of elevators along one wall. Punching a code into the panel along the side of one of them so it opened she said, "If you would please load the boxes in here."

"Yes, ma'am."

"Do you remember your way, or do you need me to show you?"

"No, ma'am," said one of them, sounding slightly insulted, "we remember."

"Good," said Fi, pulling out her blackberry, "let me know when you've finished."

Finally, when three of the elevators had been filled, one of the men came over to her.

"Need you to sign this, ma'am."

"Of course," she said taking the clipboard.

"You're just going to leave that stuff in elevators?"

"Hardly," she said handing back the clipboard, "thank you for your help gentleman, I'll take it from here."

A few of them looked at her skeptically, but they all, nonetheless, filed out. When they were all gone, she pushed a code into the door pad, locking it. After pushing codes into each of the filled elevators key pads, which then closed and started moving down, she sent herself down in one of the vacant ones.

She came out in a dark underground room with large elaborate doors across from it. Centering herself in front of the three, box filled elevators, Fi closed her eyes, focusing her mind. Finally she felt a faint tingling around her navel where she had a pentagram tattooed. Slowly, she raised her hands and the boxes began to levitate. Eyes still closed, she turned and walked gracefully to the large door, boxes following. Placing her hand on it, she muttered a few words and the doors slowly opened. Eyes still closed, she walked forward into a partially filled, dark library. Once certain all the boxes were in, she slowly lowered them and opened her eyes. Before she could turn on a few lights however, her blackberry buzzed.

"Jessa?... Can it wait?... Alright, tell him I'll be right there." She sighed.

Sealing the doors behind her, Fi made her way to Mr. Dysin's office.

* * *

"Mr. Dysin?"

"Ah, yes, come in Miss Phillips. And please close the door behind you."

Acquiescing, Fi made her way over to one of the chairs facing his desk, "You wanted to see me?"

"Yes," he answered, handing her a manila envelope, "it is my understanding that you are familiar with that particular area of our field, some would even consider you an expert."

"Yes, this was the area I specialized in back in London," she answered, idly flipping through the folder. "Why?"

"Good," he replied, taking the envelope back and handing her another one instead.

Confused, she took the proffered folder, "…Oh my God! This is… unbelievable. I mean, this… where is this?"

"Here."

"What? You mean, like, here as in America?"

"I mean here as in Colorado."

"That's not… Do we have a dating on this?"

"Early Native American."

"That's not possible," said Fi in almost a whisper, as she continued to look through the folder.

"It shouldn't be possible but clearly it is."

"But, how? Mr. Dysin, we have extensive, documented, and verifiable records that have made it clear that-"

"Miss Phillips, we do have records, records which our organization has worked hard to make as extensive, documented, and verifiable as we possibly can, but in our field we can never be one hundred percent. Our field is… unstable at best and… volatile at worst, so despite our best efforts there is only so much we can be 'clear' on. And sometimes we find out that we were greatly mistaken in our assumptions, as evidenced by that," he said, pointing at the folder.

"We have to get control of this area, Mr. Dysin."

"Yes, thank you Miss Phillips. I don't know how the company would have come to that conclusion without you," he snapped dryly. "Mr. Smyth has… ensured that our company has possession."

"Yes, of course. So, what can I do for you?"

"I want you to scout it."

"Certainly."

"Today."

"Mr. Dysin, I have shipments to see to, reports to go over… I'm already swamped and I can't afford to fall behind. Certainly this can wait a few days. I'll make a weekend trip of it but I couldn't possibly do it today, sir," Fi protested.

"You can and you will. I've decided this takes precedence. I, and my superiors, believe this deserves immediate attention from the best. That's you. You will take care of this today. Besides, you're a hard worker, it won't take you long to catch up… you can use your weekend."

"Yes, Mr. Dysin," answered Fi, suppressing a sigh. "May I go?"

"Certianly… What time should I tell Molly to expect you home?"

"Tell her not to expect me at all," she said, rising to go.

"You'll be back from this trip before nightfall, it's still early."

"Yes, but I'll have other work to see to when I do get back," she informed him, reaching for the door handle.

"Oh come now, surely it can wait till tomorrow."

"And when am I going to do tomorrow's work?" she asked, turning back to face him.

"I'm certain you can push some things to the weekend?"

"I could but I won't. As you said, I'm a hard worker and I didn't gain that reputation by leaving work unfinished."

"Fi, your mom's already worried you overwork."

"If you know my mother at all, _Mr. _Dysin," she said, emphasizing the formal address, "then you know she would worry no matter what. Now, I told you I would make this my priority but not at the expense of the rest of my work, so if you'll excuse me?"

"Yes, of course Miss Phillips."

* * *

"What pissed you off?" asked Jessa, her British accent making Fi miss London.

"Give you one guess," Fi snapped.

"Mr. Dysin?"

"He's giving me field work."

"Didn't you do field work all the time in England?"

"It's not the field work, I actually prefer it to office work. The problem is he's assigning it to me in addition to the work I already have but it takes priority, as in I have to do it today," explained Fi, trying to keep the frustration out of her voice.

"But, you have a hundred things you need to get done, today. Things you can't put off."

"Exactly."

"Did you explain that to him?"

"Of course I did, Jessa," snapped Fi. "I'm sorry, I don't mean to take it out on you. I did explain but it doesn't matter, our superiors want it done today. You know there was a time when I was on par with them… It's a long way to fall… Anyway, I'm going to be out of the office the rest of the day, and I'll probably be at the office all night."

"I'm sorry Fi. You want me to stay, I can help you."

"Thanks, but there's no reason for us both to suffer."

"Alright, just let me know if you change your mind… Fi?"

"Yea?"

"Some of… us are going to be in town next week. We thought that maybe with all of us we might try to… you know?"

"… No."

"But Fi-"

"I said no Jessa! It's dangerous, and if I find anyone's tried it without my permission or presence there will be consequences."

"Yes, Fiona."


	5. Chapter 5

Fi crawled out of the back seat of her car, having changed into more appropriate clothes. Grabbing the backpack on the floor of the backseat, Fi began her hike. It took her a good hour and she had to double check her GPS a couple times but she finally reached her destination.

"Can I help you, miss?"

"Fi whirled around, "Who are you?"

"I could ask you the same thing."

"I asked first."

"Fair enough, I'm a park ranger and this particular area is off limits. It's dangerous."

"I know how to take care of myself."

"I doubt that, city girl," the ranger snorted. "But even if you can, rules are still rules."

"I thought this area was under the control of a Mr. Smyth?"

"It is."

"Well then, don't worry about it, I'm here for Mr. Smyth. He asked me to… to do some scouting," smiled Fi.

"Mr. Smyth may have bribed the right people, but there are still laws."

"Like?" she demanded, putting her hands on her hip.

"Like having to have a ranger with you even if you have consent to explore this area."

"I see," smiled Fi deviously and holding out her hand, "lets call a truce then shall we? And you can be my guide?"

"I'll have to check with Mr. Smyth, but as long as he says it's alright than yes," he reluctantly agreed, shaking her hand.

When his hand slipped into hers, Fi quickly tightened her grip. Ignoring his raised eyebrows, she mumbled under her breath.

"Wha-" he started, but stopped as a dazed look came over his face.

"Easy there, ranger," Fi smiled, helping him to sit.

"I don't under-"

"Sshh," she instructed, leaning him against a tree. "Don't fight it."

A moment later he began snoring deeply. Letting out a sigh of relief, Fi made her way over to the valley. Looking over the edge, she noticed there didn't seem to be a way to hike down. Sighing she opened her pack.

With everything in place, Fi began repelling down into the valley. Fighting the urge to close her eyes, she slowly made her way down and tried not to think about falling. Feeling her feet hit the ground, she quickly detached herself from the harness.

"Oh my God," she breathed taken aback at the ruins and rock drawings.

The find was revolutionary and would change a lot of what the company thought it knew. Suppressing her excitement, Fi dug a small camera out of her bag. She started with the walls of the valley, capturing the drawings on film, before moving on to the small ruins sticking out of the ground. Finally satisfied she had taken enough pictures, she began to take samples and notes.

After several hours, she felt she had enough preliminary information for one day. She would need to sort through what she had collected before she could do anything more on sight. But first, she wanted to examine one ruin in particular.

Fi made her way to the center of the valley, stopping before the largest of the ruins. It was a raised pentagram with indentations at each of the points with inscriptions around them. Fi chewed on her lip. She had a talent for languages and was fluent in a good many, and was at least familiar with a few more but she had no knowledge of Native American languages.

-_The principle should still be the same… I mean, if it doesn't work, worst case… it kills me. Okay, that's a pretty bad worst case but, it's not likely and the majority of magic is guess work, anyway…_-

Before she could change her mind, Fi began filling the indentations with the appropriate elements in the traditional order. When she was finished, she retrieved a knife from her bag. Gritting her teeth, she slit her palm open and quickly pressed it into the center of the pentagram.

The wind began picking up, becoming rather violent. The sky over the valley became dark and Fi could feel the earth vibrating beneath her. Panicked, she tried to pull free but found she couldn't. She was trapped. The center of the ancient symbol turned a glassy clear, and her hand begun to sink into it. Struggling to breathe as panic began to take over her, she desperately pulled against it. But like quicksand, the more she fought it the faster it pulled her in. She let out a scream, as it sucked her whole body in.

Fi felt her body hit ground, painfully. Fighting off a wave of nausea, she pushed herself up. She wasn't trapped in the pentagram, but was back in the valley. However, it was no longer early afternoon but late evening. Shaking, Fi collected her things and made her way out of the valley. Ignoring her exhaustion, she laid her hand on the still sleeping guard and mumbled the counter spell.

He didn't wake up. Concerned, Fi tried casting another spell, and calling on an element. Nothing. She closed her eyes and tried to just feel her magic, the world's magic, any magic. Nothing. Shoving down her panic, Fi turned and began stumbling back to her car. The guard would wake with the sunrise, regardless.

* * *

Stumbling out of her office, Fi left the camera with a note on Jessa's desk. She glanced at the clock as she fought back a yawn. Five o'clock. She should have time to get home, freshen up, and get back to the office.

She paused on the sidewalk, closing her eyes to the dizziness.

-_Coffee. I just need coffee._- she tried to assure herself, even as her legs felt ready to give out.

"Fi?"

She looked up in surprise, and felt her legs buckle.

"Fi, what's wrong," demanded Carey, catching her.

"What are you doing here?" she asked, her mind feeling foggy.

"I was running. Fi, what's the matter with you," he asked again, pressing his hand to her forehead.

"Nothing, I'm just tired," Fi insisted, as another wave of nausea rolled over her.

"Fi, you're burning up. I'm getting you home, where's you car?"


	6. Chapter 6

Carey kicked the front door a couple of times, and tightened his hold on Fi.

"Molly!" he called, kicking the door again. "Molly!"

"I'm coming," came her tired voice from somewhere in the house. A few moments later the door opened, "Carey, what's- Oh my God, what happened?"

"Molly, what's- Oh God, what happened to her," Will demanded, as Carey carried an almost unconscious Fiona into the house.

"Mom?" came Fi's weak voice.

"I'm right here, baby. Can you get her up upstairs?"

"Yea," said Carey, heading upstairs.

"I have a friend who makes house calls," said Will, heading toward the phone.

* * *

"He's on his way over. What happened?" asked Will again, as he entered Fiona's room.

Molly and Annie both looked expectantly at Carey.

"I'm not sure. I mean, I was running when I saw Fi and she looked ready to pass out, which she almost did. I asked her what was wrong but she insisted she was fine but she was burning up. I drove her here and she started drifting in and out as we drove. I tried waking her up when we got here but she wasn't making any sense and I couldn't get her up," explained Carey, sounding scared.

Molly turned back to Fi when she heard her groan, "Fiona, baby? Oh God, she really is burning up, Annie get the thermometer."

"No! Oh God," came Fi's desperate voice as she began to twist and turn. "Help me!"

"Help you what, baby? What is it?"

"No," she moaned again her voice weaker, as her body fell limp.

"Here," said Annie holding out a thermometer.

Molly turned to Will a moment later, fear all over her face, "One-oh- two point three."

"That's really high," said Annie, sounding scared.

"No, leave… be… I…" mumbled Fi, incoherently.

"Annie? Carey? Would you guys wait downstairs, that way we'll know when the doctor gets here?" asked Will.

"Um, yea."

"Sure."

"Dorian," Fi moaned, as she began to thrash about again.

* * *

"Well?" Molly pushed, again.

"Let her rest."

"Let her rest? My daughter has a dangerously high fever and is practically delirious, and all you can say is 'let her rest'? That's it, I'm taking her to a hospital."

"Mrs. Phillips, from what you've told me your daughter has overworked herself to the point of exhaustion, she's helping to head a company launch at the same time as she is adjusting to a new country, a new home, a new lifestyle. Plus, I think she has a touch of the flu. That's a lot for a body to take, and it's all taking its toll on her at once. So, yes, let her rest, which is exactly what a hospital would have her do. Use cool clothes to keep her fever down, whenever she's awake enough try to get fluids and Tylenol in her but don't worry if you can't. If her fever spikes again or her symptoms worsen feel free to give me a call but in the end you just need to let her-"

"Rest?"

"Exactly. Now, if you'll excuse me?" he said, giving Will a pointed look as he turned to leave.

"Yea, sure," snapped Molly going to sit by Fiona.

"I'll see you out," offered Will.

"I'm sorry Owen," said Will, "She's just… worried."

"I know," he smiled, "Now, I suspect you want my real diagnosis?"

"Yes."

"Don't worry, the company's precious Fiona Phillips should be just fine."

"Should? This girl is important to us, I need more than a should."

"Yes, yes, I know. Now, where is that blonde girl?"

"Here," said Annie stepping into the room. "What's going on?"

"Good, good. Miss Phillips is… on a sort of vision quest, a very powerful one. It is important she finishes, which is why her mother mustn't take her to the hospital _and_ it is why I need you," he said turning to look at Annie.

"Me? What can I do?"

"She needs a guide."

Comprehension dawning, Annie looked down to where she felt her panther's presence coming from and closed her eyes. It took a few minutes of concentrating but when she opened her eyes, she could actually see him.

"Please?" she asked, and watched as he made his way upstairs to Fi. "Will it help? Can you actually borrow somebody else's spirit guide?"

"I'm not certain. It is definitely unconventional but she needs one and her spirit is too burdened, too guarded for her to find her own. I'm hoping this might help keep her safe."

"How long till she wakes up?" asked Will.

"Whenever the dream is finished and that's the best answer I can give you. Just wait things out, she's strong and now she has a guide so don't worry too much."

"Thank you, Owen. What do I owe you?"

"A favor, at some point," he smiled mischievously, and left the house.

* * *

"Mom? Is she going to be okay?"

"I don't know, Jack," Molly answered truthfully.

"Why aren't you taking her to the hospital? Do you honestly believe that Owen guy was right?"

"I don't know, Jack. But Will does. Besides, I don't think Fi would want to…to g… g-o to the hospital," Molly stuttered over her yawn.

"Mom, if you don't get some sleep soon, you're going to be sick."

"I'm fine."

"Mom-"

"I'm not going to leave her alone, Jack," Molly snapped. Then looking guilty, "… I'm sorry."

"It's okay. And you don't have to leave her alone, I'll stay with her."

"All night?"

"All night, Mom, I promise."

Molly took one last look at Fi, and patting Jack's shoulder on her way out, said, "Thank-you, baby."

"Hey Fi, you really have to fight this," said jack, re-wetting the cloth on her forehead. "We're all worried about you, mom especially. Come on Fi, we need you to wake up."

"Noooo," moaned Fi weakly, her breath catching.

"Fi? Fiona?"

"…God… Please… can't… gone… help me," she mumbled incoherently, panting heavily.

"Come on Fi, I know you, your stronger than whatever this is. Come back to us."

"Dorian," she gasped, starting to twist and turn again.

* * *

"Jack?" came Fi's groggy voice."

"Fi?" he demanded, jerking awake from where he had been dozing. "Fiona? Come on, I'm right here, wake up."

"Jack," she muttered again, her eyelids fluttering open.

"Hi," he smiled, "How're you feeling?"

"Feeling? What happened?" she asked, trying to think through the fogginess that was her mind- so much had happened.

"Fi, what's the last thing you remember?"

"Um? Carey, I was with Carey. Why was I with Carey?"

"He brought you home," Jack reminded her.

"Brought me… Why would…" Fi closed her eyes, willing her mind to clear- it didn't work.

"You collapsed, Fi. He was there and he brought you home," explained Jack.

"When?"

"About four days ago."

"Four days!" she croaked, trying to sit up but, at wave of dizziness let jack push her back down.

"You need to rest, Fi," he instructed.

"I didn't have four days to lose," she moaned, her brain finally starting to clear.

"Don't worry about that now. I'm going to go call mom, she went to the store to get some things for you… Will you be okay alone for a few?"

"Yea, Jack, I'll be fine," she said, biting back a sarcastic retort.

"Alright, I'll be back as soon as I can," he assured, "Is there anything I can get you."

"No, I'm fine."

A few minutes later, Jack was in the kitchen dialing the phone, "Mom?... No, nothing's wrong… No, no, Fi's awake… Yea… right now she's lying down in be- shoot… The shower just started… I know she shouldn't be up but you know how Fi is… Yea… yea… I'll get her back to bed as soon as she's out…okay, are you on your way back, then? Alright, bye."


	7. Chapter 7

**Sorry it has been so long since I updated but, you know, life... Muchos gracias to Crimson and Chrome 42 for my review :) And to anyone else who want's to review, do, please? Feed back helps, though I won't base my posting on my reviews, I simply post when I can and while I can't promise how regularly I'll post, I just promise that I will see this story through. So I think that's all I have to say for now, please enjoy.**

**Oh, and I own nothing, it's all disney.  
**

Slowly, Fi sat down as the hot water poured over her, washing off soap, shampoo, and several days' worth of sweat. She bent her head down to rest it on her knees, getting up so soon might have been a bit overzealous but she didn't have the luxury of lying about. She reached out a hand to turn up the water temperature but stopped herself. She would have to test it at some point. Stealing herself for disappointment, Fi focused and, to her relief, felt the familiar tingle of her pentagram. Smiling in relief, she made the faucet turn a little more to the left and raised her face to the falling water.

-_What was it? What did he call it?... Vision quest… Why was _Annie's_ spirit guide there… And Dorian… it always comes back to Dorian… I can't do it, I can't go against him… I just want him out of my life, I can live without him, I can forget him but I can't… I won't…. It's not fair_- Fi thought, fighting the urge to scream at the cosmos- _Haven't I done enough, fought enough, survived enough… I can't do it anymore, I can't face what's to come…. I JUST WANT OUT! I want normal but… I can't go back but… I can't do it, it's too much for one person… I want out…_-

"Fi?... Fi, are you alright?" came Jack's voice from the bathroom door, "You've been in there for almost forty minutes."

"Yea, fine… I'm almost done," she called back.

Shakily, Fi pushed herself to her feet and turned off the water. She stepped out of the tub, and had to grab the towel rack for support. She closed her eyes and slowed her breathing. She would not pass out; at least, not until she had clothes on. Eventually it passed and Fi, slowly, dressed and toweled her hair.

Breathing heavily, and using the wall for support, she made her way to the door, opened it, and walked right into Jack.

"Easy," he said steadying her, "Are you alright?"

"Yea, fine," she answered, trying not to sound out of breath.

"Now why don't I believe that?" he teased, sliding an arm around her and supporting most of her weight.

Grateful for his help she smiled, "Because you're a cynic who demands hard evidence?"

"You know it," he answered, opening the door to her room.

"I changed the sheets for you, now get in bed," Molly ordered, sounding distinctly upset.

"Mom-"

"Now, Fiona."

Feeling like a little kid, she let Jack walk her over to the bed. The moment he had sat her down, Molly swooped in.

"Mom!" she tried to protest as Molly fussily tucked her in just like she had when Fi was five. "I'm fi-"

"Don't! Don't you dare say you're fine, Fiona Phillips. You were carried home unconscious and spent four days in bed and delirious. You. Are. Not. Fine!" lectured Molly. "And what's the first thing you do when you wake up? You get up and start moving around, getting ready, as if you were the picture of health, when you should have still been in bed!"

Fi started to squirm under her mother's scrutiny, which only made Molly fuss more.

"Mo-"

"You need to rest!"

Fi stilled herself, fighting off a sense of claustrophobia, and answered, "Yes ma'am.

"Good."

"Anyone, hungry?" asked Will from the door, who smiled when Fi's stomach growled loudly. "I guess that's a yes. Annie said that Ned and the gang are on the way, Molly. How're you feeling, Fi?"

"I'm not allowed to answer that question," she pouted.

"She insists she's fine when she's not," snapped Molly, taking the tray and placing it on the bed. Then, grabbing the spoon before Fi could, brought it up to her daughters mouth, "She's going to kill herself if she doesn't start taking better care of herself; and why is she not eating?"

"First off, _she _is in the room so you can stop talking about me like I'm not here, and secondly, I am perfectly able to feed myself," snapped Fi, taking the spoon from her mother.

"Okay, you guys, time out," said the ever present voice of reason-Jack, "No, I'm serious. Mom, you're smothering her, she's a big girl. Fi, we're all just worried- mom especially- there's no reason to be rude."

Although the two women didn't acknowledge Jack to be right, they did stop bickering.

At the sound of a doorbell, they heard Annie call, "I've got it.

* * *

"Can we come in?"

"Yea, sure," answered Fi.

"Fi, this is a friend of mine, Owen," explained Will. "The family believes he is a doctor who makes house calls."

"And what are you really?" Fi asked.

"I'm… sort of an unofficial Shaman," he smiled.

"Right."

"Was your Vision Quest enlightening?"

"Yea, sure."

"Do you have any questions?"

"Yea, why do I still feel like crap? I mean, it's over isn't it?"

"Yes, it is over.

"So why do I still feel like crap?" she persisted.

"I'm not completely sure, Miss Phillips. I believe it is a number of things. What I told your mother about suffering from exhaustion is true. You've been pushing your body to the breaking point for a while from what I can gather and I think the Vision Quest pushed you over the edge. Now your body is forcing you to rest, perhaps you should listen to it. Also, this Vision Quest was… unusual, forced, where as they are suppose to be voluntary. The… lack of choice, I'm sure was jarring to your system. Furthermore, because you didn't choose it, you probably weren't ready for one."

"How long will she be out of commission?"

"Hard to say… At minimum she should spend a few days on bed rest and the rest of the week recuperating. Ideally, I'd like to see how she's doing after two weeks of resting-"

"She doesn't have two weeks, really she can't even afford a week, she's already lost four days!" exclaimed Will.

"And once again, _she_ is right here, so you can stop talking about me as if I'm not. Now, as Will pointed out, I don't have that kind of time to spare. I appreciate your concern but-"

"You need rest!" insisted the shaman. "I don't care what your schedule is like, you will make the time… or I will insist that a hospital visit would be good for you, and I'm sure Molly would be happy to oblige. And Will can't object for you without raising suspicions."

"Three days," she scowled at him, trying to control her anger.

"Three days?"

"I'll rest for three days, but then I go back to work and if you try to make trouble for me you'll find out why I earned my reputation," Fi threatened.

"Will?" implored the Shaman, hoping he would see reason, hoping he would think of her as his future stepdaughter instead of a company commodity.

"We'll give you the three days, but not a minute more."

"Alright," he sighed. "I'll speak to Molly and you're on bed rest for the rest of today, take things slow tomorrow but you can move around a little."

"He has more of a back bone than I thought," she mused, as she heard his footsteps fade down the hall. "I take it you're going to make a record of his… insubordination?"

"Yes, and he may just get a visit too."

Fi suppressed a shudder, feeling slightly sorry for the man, "I'll call Jessa and have her bring some work by under the pretense of a visit. At least I can start to catch up."

"Fi, if you really do need the rest…" he trailed off, knowing she would refuse.

"What I need is to not fall any farther behind."

"Alright, and, at some point, we're going to have a chat about Dorian," he replied sternly.

"I'm sorry?" she said, somewhat indignant.

"You kept calling out for him while you… dreamed. It would seem you have not severed the connection quite as much as you would have us think."

Fi opened her mouth to protest but he held up his hand as he made his way to the door, "Later… Just rest for now."


	8. Chapter 8

"Fi! The work day ends at five."

"I'm aware, mom."

"It's eight!"

"I'm aware of that too," she snapped, her tone going steely.

"Fiona, baby," implored Molly, hoping a gentler tactic would help, "you haven't even been back at work for a week yet, your body is still recuperating. And don't tell me it isn't. Do you think I haven't noticed the dizzy spells, or the ridiculous amounts of Advil and caffeine you've been consuming? You look exhausted, Fi."

"I know, mom," she sighed. "It just doesn't change anything."

Fi made for the stairs, seriously considering moving into town, as the door bell rang.

"I'll get it," Jack called out.

"Hello, I'm looking for a Fiona, is she here?"

Fi froze. She knew that voice, she loved that voice, she hated it too. He couldn't be here, she couldn't afford the complication. She couldn't handle being around him. Why would he come?"

"Fi?" came Jack's voice from right behind her, making her jump. "Didn't you hear me calling? There's someone here for you."

"Right," she murmured, heading toward the front door.

"So, how do you know Fi?" she heard Ned ask as she entered the room.

"He's just an old acquaintance," she said casually before he could answer though her death glare at the man contradicted her claim.

"I missed you too, love," he smiled and she tried not to think about how sexy he looked leaning against the wall. His expression fell as he took in her appearance though, "Are you alright, love?"

"I'm fine," she snapped, tired of being asked the question.

Concern evident in his expression, Dorian walked over to her and gently tucked a piece of hair behind her ear, "You don't look fine, love, you look like you should be in bed."

"Outside."

"What?"

"We'll talk about why ever it is you're here, outside," she snapped.

"You always did neglect your own well being," he sighed draping an arm over her shoulder.

She shrugged it off and tried to push ahead of him. He just wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her back to his side.

"Don't be like that, love."

She sighed, but let him leave his hand where it was, determinedly avoiding the stares of the Bell family audience.

"Alright," she snapped, once the door had closed behind her. "What's going on?"

"Can't I just want to see you again?"

"Dorian" she sighed, falling into the porch swing. "Just stop. We are nothing anymore and if you are here to… fix us, then please just go."

"You really aren't well are you, love?" he asked, surprised by the lack of fight in her voice. Kneeling in front of her, he asked "What happened?"

"Nothing you need to know about."

"Fine," he sighed, pulling himself up and next to her. "I _am_ actually here for business reasons. There are some… unpleasant rumors going around."

"I haven't heard anything out of the ordinary."

"Rumors going around the Dregs."

"Oh… there're always rumors there, what's the big deal?"

"Just look over this, please?" he asked, pushing a flash drive into her hand.

"Fine, but you had better not be wasting my time."

"I'm not… Love?"

"What?"

"Look at me?"

She did and found Dorian's lips on hers. She moved her hands to push him away but he quickly pulled her closer so she couldn't get enough leverage. And she was just so tired, was it worth fighting?

Fi felt herself leaning into his kiss as her arms wrapped around his neck. And taking that as an invitation, Dorian's tongue slid into her mouth. All thought flying from her head, Fi maneuvered herself so she was straddling his lap. She leaned into him and felt her stomach flip as he started slowly bringing his hand lower down her back, his finger tracing the line of her pants. Fi felt herself growing dizzy from lack of air but didn't stop.

"Easy love," said Dorian, breaking the kiss. "While I'm usually one for jumping back in the saddle, we both know you're not changing your opinion on us anytime soon. I am going to get you back but I'm going to do it the right way."

Fi tried to fight down her disappointment as he lifted her off him and back onto the porch swing.

"Look over the file, love, then get in contact with me when you're ready," he said, heading toward the steps. "I love you, Fi."

"Good night, Dorian," she answered quietly.

Fi watched him walk, swiftly disappearing into the darknesss. She tried to make herself feel angry over what had happened but all she managed was regret, which frightened her more than she wanted to admit. She could not let herself love him again, but then she wasn't sure she'd ever stopped.

"Dorian visited?" came Will's voice from the door.

"Yes," she told him, quickly tucking the flash drive up her sleeve.

"Why?"

"Why do you think?" she snapped. "I ended things, not him. Something he's never been happy about."

"Fi-"

"No Will, this isn't the company's concern," she told him, heading inside, hurrying to her room to avoid questions- moving into town was sounding better and better.

* * *

"And then, he's like, 'dude, I don't think that's my guitar!'" finished Clue to a chorus of laughter.

"God, Clue, where do you find these people," laughed Fi.

"You don't want to know, my friend, you don't want to know," he answered.

"You're probably right," she agreed, standing up, "I'm going to get a refill."

"Fi? Isn't that your third already?" asked a motherly sounding Irene, with an approving nod from Molly.

"Yea," she answered, but when their expressions didn't change she sighed, "Guys, I spent the past couple of years hanging out in English Pubs, trust me, this is nothing. I have a long way to go before you need to worry."

She made her way over to the bar, glad she was finally having a relaxing night out. It also helped that no one was pestering her about overdoing it, either. The night was about Molly, in celebration of her latest release's success, and Fi was more than happy to stay out of the spotlight.

"You wanna refill, honey?" asked the bartender.

"I'm gonna switch to a long island."

"Sure thing."

"Why don't you save it till she get's back?" came a British accent from behind her. "She and I have a dance, isn't that right love?"

"I suppose it wouldn't kill me," she sighed, turning around to face Dorian. "I'll finish that off for you, though."

Dorian smiled as she took his bourbon and knocked it back in one go, "I wasn't finished with that."

"Then maybe you should drink faster, I'll be back for _my_ drink afte this song," she told the bartender over her shoulder.

"Sure thing, honey."

"I didn't think you'd actually agree to dance with me, love," Dorian told her as he lead her onto the dance floor.

"I didn't want to cause a scene," she told him bluntly, throwing a worried look in the direction of her family.

"Don't worry," he assured guiding her through the mass of gyrating bodies, "Nobody noticed, and even if he had, he still wouldn't have recognized me from across the room, and nobody is going to notice us in this mess. So relax a little, love."

"Are you kidding me? My position is precarious enough as it is."

"I don't care," he told her, pulling her against him as they started to move with the music. "Your position is your own making, you _could_ walk away from the company."

"I won't though, you know that," she told him, trying to think clearly as thoughts of how good he smelled kept trying to confuse her.

"Why not? Are they really worth it? I walked away, after all."

"Yea, and look where that got you Dorian. Besides, you never had the obligations I do."

"Yes," he said, pulling her suddenly closer, too close. "I was lucky enough to escape the burden of family."

"I didn't mean it that way," she tried to apologized, as he slowly slid a hand down to grip her hip.

"Yes, you did, love," he told her, suddenly dipping her. "That's _exactly_ how you meant it, but it is the truth, so you needn't apologize. Though, you could afford a little more tact next time."

Fi nodded dumbly, as most of her mind was preoccupied with how his breath played on her neck. He yanked her back up, non too gently, and spun her so her back was pressed against his chest, their bodies molding together as he continued to move them in time to the music. She tried to ignore the way his fingers tickled as they dug into her waist.

"Did I ever tell you how much I like this dress on you?" he whispered, his lips brushing softly against her ear.

"Y-yes," she stuttered, leaning into him willingly, her resolve fading. "You should stop."

"Oh but, love," he murmured, nipping at her neck and smiling as he heard her breath catch, "seducing you is so much fun."

"D-dorian, please?" she whispered, her body tingling traitorously.

"I suppose I'll have to have my fun later," he said, obligingly turning her back to face him, though he kept her body close to his. "Besides, we have business to attend to. Have you looked over what I gave you?"

"Yes," she answered, thankful to feel her head clearing.

"And?"

"I think it's worth looking into."

"Good, it's a date then," he smiled, looking like temptation itself.

"D-dorian, I d-don't think that's-"

"Relax love, I'd keep it strictly professional," he smiled.

"I still don't-"

"Fiona," he said, suddenly serious, "I'm seeing this through, with or without you. I'd just rather do it with you… I know you blame me for what happened, but I do miss her too."

Sighing, she let her head fall against his impressively toned chest, "Just… Just give some time to think of something, alright?"

"One week, love. I've already given you over a month and I don't have the time to wait much longer," he told her, wrapping his arms tightly around her.

"Alright," she agreed, trying not to think about how much she just complicated her life.

"And sadly, now that the business is over, we don't have much time for the pleasure," he sighed as the song neared to an end. "Fiona?"

She looked up at him, knowing he was going to cross a line, knowing she was going to let him. She felt her breath hitch in her chest as he slowly slid a hand down her waist and over her hip. When he reached her thigh, he gripped tightly and yanked it up, wrapping her leg around his waist. The move forced her other leg to go up onto its toes, which, to his pleasure, caused her to fall against him. Smiling, and supporting her slight weight, he bent his head down.

Fiona felt her walls melt as he pressed his lips to hers. She had missed kissing him and noticed how small the voice in her head which always told her to push him away had become. So, she happily ignored it, kissing him back. To her surprise, he kept the kiss gentle and slow. It wasn't driven with the usual passion that emanated from him but instead possessed a delicate heat that stripped her defenses. Even when she opened her mouth to him, his tongue only teased her, catching her lips or the edges of her teeth softly. She felt desire burning through her as he pulled her lovingly along, waking up feelings she thought she had buried deep. And all too soon, leaving her longing for more, he pulled away, and let her body slide back down.

"In a week, my love," he smiled, causing her stomach to squirm even more, and with that, he left her dazed and alone on the dance floor.

_He better have made that drink strong, _she thought as she made her way over to the bar, trying to regain her composure.


	9. Chapter 9

Disclaimer:... Don't own it.

Giving up, Fi pulled herself out of bed. Finding her cigarettes and lighter, she made for the door but paused before opening it. She saw her father's guitar still sitting in the corner of the room. It couldn't hurt. Grabbing it, she made her way downstairs and onto the porch. Settling herself on the swing she lit up and took out the guitar. She didn't have anything particular in mind but sat strumming it.

If she could convince Will that she was using Dorian, she might be able to get away with working with him. Of course, that meant she'd have to start giving up information on what they were doing. After two days, though, it was the best she had thought of because there was no way she'd be able to do what she needed to with him and keep it from the company, even she wasn't that good.

Why couldn't he have let her go and just stayed out of her life? Not loving him was so easy- well, not easy, but it was manageable- when he was gone but then he'd come waltzing into her life and turn her feelings upside down. She couldn't love him, she should never have loved him in the first place. She had known it was dangerous and went ahead anyway and now she was paying the price, and it was a hefty one.

How could she love and hate someone so much at the exact same time? And why could she not control herself? She didn't have the luxury of being some silly, love sick girl and, yet, that's what she was being. She felt rather disgusted with herself. There was so much riding on her shoulders, she needed to get a hold of herself. And she would come so close but then he would smile, or call her love, or ask if she was alright, or kiss her and every wall she had managed to get up would come tumbling down. Why did he have such a hold on her?

And how could she betray Arrie like this? Her twin deserved better. She was gone because of Dorian and Fi hadn't even managed to cut off ties with him, let alone kill him. She didn't deserve to be a Priestess. But she was, and despite her mistakes and short comings and offers to be Stripped, they kept her as their Priestess. What did they see in her? Why did the company want her so badly? And why did her bloody destiny have to be so screwed up?

She had moved with her aunt to get away from all of this and instead was shoved in even deeper. And she couldn't even have him by her side! It wasn't fair. And why did she still want him so badly? He was a traitor and a murderer and if her people, her twin, meant anything to her at all, she would have executed him already! But she hadn't. There was that small seed of doubt. That tiny yet firm part of her that said he couldn't be responsible, no matter what the evidence claimed.

She needed him out of her life and mind so she could deal with things properly, so she could handle the information impartially. She needed him gone! She needed him with her! She needed it to stop hurting!

Fi glanced down, having realized she was actually playing tune and not one she knew.

* * *

Fi stared at her dinner plate, not really seeing it. Her conversation with Will had not been pleasant, successful, but not pleasant.

Flashback-

_"Mr. Dysin, can we talk?"_

_ "Certainly, Miss Phillips."_

_ "There is a side project I'm interested in pursuing," she told him, taking a seat. "I don't think it's anything the company needs to worry about, not yet anyway. I just want to be prepared."_

_ "Of course. Your status is still higher than most, you hardly need my permission for this. Actually, you're not even required to inform me," he answered, confused. _

_ "I know, but… there is an aspect to it that the company won't like and well, I'd rather be honest from the start, than have my head taken off later,," she told him, only slightly joking. _

_ "What exactly are you up to, Miss Phillips?" he asked, suspicion clear in his voice._

_ "I need a partner for this, but it can't be just anyone… I need someone who can actually help, give me the needed information, someone who is already… involved. Actually, he's the one who brought it to my attention."_

_ "He," frowned Will, his eyes narrowing. "Dorian?"_

_ "Yes."_

_ "Fiona!"_

_ "Calm down! Someone will hear you."_

_ "You should have pronounced sentence on him already, and instead you want to work with him? The company might just take your head. You're already on thin ice."_

_ "You think I don't know that?" she hissed. "But I'm not going to risk an important lead simply for the sake of revenge."_

_ "Revenge? We're talking about justice, Fiona. Besides the company does have the right to usurp your… authority in this matter and handle it themselves."_

_ "Again, you think I don't know that? I know our laws and ways, but you don't understand the position I am in. You have never had to be judge, jury, and executioner, I have. I have never and will never pass judgment unless I am absolutely sure and I certainly won't be bullied by pissed off Council members who are more concerned with retribution than the truth!"_

_ "Watch yourself Miss Phillips, or do you forget you place?" he snapped._

_ "Do you forget yours?" she snarled, her blue hair turning a shocking white, her eyeballs going completely black. Then, in an unrecognizable accent, she continued, "I know my place, _child_, and you would do well to remember yours! I accept the Council's rule for the sake of peace but we both know what I have the authority to do!"_

_ "And you would bring Armageddon on us?" he demanded, sounding torn between incredulousness and fear. _

_ "It is tempting," she answered, not an ounce of remorse in her voice. _

_ "The Council is not easily dethroned, as they told you at your initiation. They would make a stand and we might even win, after all that is how they gained power in the first place. Would you really risk it… Honored Priestess?"_

_ "Perhaps I like to gamble, _child_?" she replied venomously. _

_ "I see," he answered, his voice now a mix of fear and respect. "For now, Honored Priestess, I will trust your judgment… as you have trusted the Council's in the past. I am sure I can convince our… higher ups to indulge you in this."_

_ "Good," she said, her appearance and accent returning to normal… or as normal as blue hair and facial piercings could be._

_ Without waiting for a reply, she strode from the room. Once the door was closed behind her, Fi set a hurried pace for her own office, ignoring Jessa's questions as she locked the door behind her. Sinking into her desk chair, she realized she was shaking. It had been a long time since Fi had lost control like that; lost control and given into who she was, to the power and curse that lived within in her. It was not a good sign._

End flashback.

Definitely not pleasant, but effective, at least.

"Fi?...Fi?...Fiona!"

"W-hat? Oh, sorry Irene, what were you saying?"

"I was asking if you're alright?"

"Yes, fine," she said, trying to smile reassuringly.

"Really?" asked Clue, "Cause mom was calling you for, like, a full minute."

"Yea," added Carey, looking concernedly at Fi's continuously shrinking frame. "And you've barely eaten anything."

"Oh," said Fi, noticing her still full plate and everyone else's almost empty one. "I'm just distracted, I guess."

Fi forced down a bite of food to appease them, despite the fact that she had absolutely no appetite.

"If you say so," said Jack, who, noticing his sister's discomfort, was trying to change the subject. "So, we were going to head to Denver tomorrow, Sis, check out that new club that opened, do some shopping maybe, you want to come?"

"Thanks, but I can't."

"Why not?" asked Molly, who'd been in a bad mood the whole dinner.

"I've already made plans," snapped Fi, responding to Molly's mood with her own.

"What plans?" demanded Molly, who wasn't even trying to hide her anger now.

"I'm doing some research with a friend," she answered vaguely, her anger, once again, rising to match Molly's.

"Great, more work," she snapped, standing up with her plate.

"Hardly, this is more of personal project," Fi answered, trying to reign in her temper.

"Right," snorted Molly, grabbing Fiona's plate as well.

"Excuse me?" said Fi, gesturing to her still full plate.

"We both know it's not like you're going to eat it anyway," snapped Molly, slight concern edging her voice.

"And what is that suppose to mean?" she demanded, getting up to follow her mother into the kitchen.

"It means that if you want to starve yourself, than fine, I won't get in the way," Molly answered, practically slamming the plates on the counter.

"I am not starving myself," said a rather incensed Fi.

"Fiona, you look like a skeleton!"

"Hardly," she snorted.

Fi knew she had lost a good bit of weight. She was stressed, which meant she had no appetite. As soon as things settled, she knew her weight would come back on, making her mother understand that, though, would be near impossible. She was just glad her mother hadn't been there to see her a month or so before she left England, then skeleton would have applied. Right now she was just a little thin, as far as she was concerned.

"Hardly?" demanded her mother. "Do you even look in the mirror anymore?"

"Mom, you are so beyond overreacting right now! Would you just calm down and stop worrying so much!"

* * *

"Stop worrying?" came Molly's floored voice from the kitchen.

"You know, I think the game's starting," said Irene, standing up.

"It's my job to worry about you," continued Molly in her rant, "especially since you refuse to worry about yourself!"

"Sounds good to me," said Ned quickly, standing up as well.

"And now you're moving out, and there's going to be no one to make sure you take care of yourself. And don't look at me like that, I saw the notebook on your bed!"

"Definitely time to watch the game, loudly," said Will, as he and the others made their way to the family room.

* * *

"Is _that_ what this is about? You went snooping in my things and didn't like what you found?"

"It was open on the bed, I was dropping off that book I borrowed and saw it," Molly defended.

"And instead of asking me about it, you just assumed!" accused Fi.

"What was I suppose to think? You said yourself that at some point you're going to move out!"

"At some point, mom, not tomorrow! Your smothering, though, is making me wish it was tomorrow!" yelled Fi, giving in to her temper.

"And what is _that_ suppose to mean?"

"It means you have to accept that fact that I'm not fifteen years old anymore, mom."

"I know that."

"Your actions say otherwise!"

"Well maybe if you stopped acting like a teenager, I'd stop treating you like one!"

"Don't even! I'm sorry I grew up on you, I'm sorry I have responsibilities you don't like but those are the facts. Just because you don't like the way things are right now does not mean I am not acting like kid and you know it. The one acting immature is you! I am simply trying to do my job, which you are making extremely difficult. Do you even realize that you are one of my main sources of stress?"

"What happened to you Fiona? It's like I don't even know you anymore?"

"You don't mom. I grew up I'm not the same person I was six years ago! It's not my fault you can't accept that!"

"Maybe it's because I prefer the person you were six years ago!" snapped Molly, losing the last bits of control she had on her temper.

"Well get in line!" snapped Fiona, failing to hide how much her mother's words had hurt her.

"Baby, I'm sorry," said Molly, realizing what she had said to her daughter. "I didn't mean-"

"Yes, you did," said Fiona, hurt and resignation clear in her voice. "And you aren't wrong. I was a better person than, I was blessedly naive. But I grew up, and I can't change the past, mom, and whether we like it or not, we both have to accept the person I am now, because it's not changing."

"Where are you going?" called Molly.

"For a ride," Fi called back, grabbing her leather jacket and making her way to the garage.

Fi pulled her helmet on and straddled the motorcycle she had bought shortly after returning to the states. She loved riding, it was one of the few things that cleared her head. Fighting back her tears, she revved her engine, and drove off.


	10. Chapter 10

So a few notes... Finals are comming up soon so it might be a little while till I update again, sorry but I gotta pass.

I don't own so weird.

I also don't own Charmed, which i used as inspiration for the first conversation between Dorian and Fi (Charmed season 4 episode 1), They just captured the grief so well in it that I thought it was perfect.

Also, Reviews are much appreciated.

"She was right, wasn't she?"

"I think you both had your points," said Jack, helping with the kitchen.

"She just has me so worried," pleaded Molly.

"We're all worried too, mom, but its Fi, you know? She's stubborn and independent; our best bet is to back off a little. Besides, Fi's strong; she knows how to take care of herself."

"But what if-"

"Mom," he interrupted, "yea, bad things are going to happen to her but you have to let them happen. She has to live her life and you can't always be there to save her from the bad stuff, otherwise she can't grow. I mean, a baby learns to walk by falling down a lot, right?… Mom, if you don't back off, you're going to push her even farther away."

* * *

Fi pulled over by the cemetery. She had been driving for an hour and could still feel her emotions roiling through her, fueled-in part- by the magic she had let loose in Will's office. She needed to calm down.

Fi made her way to her father's grave, unlike most people she knew graveyards didn't bother her, never had. Actually, she found them quite peaceful. She sat down, leaning against his tombstone, and let out a sigh. She was going to have to find a way to repair things with her mother but she needed to be calm for that. Closing her eyes, Fi pulled herself into her mind, and found herself in a wood. Actually, it was the same wood that she and Arrie would go to, to relax back home. Giving into the temptation, Fi mixed magic and memory causing Arrie to appear next to her, or at least, a mental echo of the girl.

"Oh Fi," came Arrie's concerned voice as she pulled her twin into a hug, "tell me everything."

* * *

"Where'd you go?"

"The cemetery," answered Fi, who, considering the hour, had hoped to make it to her bed without running into anyone.

"You okay?" asked Jack.

"Sure."

"Fi?" he said, doubt clear in his voice.

"I'm calm now," she conceded, "and I think that's as good as it's going to get. How's mom?"

"Confused, upset, angry, unsure," shrugged Jack.

"Great," she sighed, plopping down on the couch. "So I'm guessing everyone heard everything?"

"Yep, you two can really yell."

"Great… Sorry about that."

"Don't worry," he said smiling, "we've all been taking bets as to when you two would have it out, anyway"

"Oh, gee, thanks Jack," she laughed, punching him lightly in the arm.

"Anytime."

"What do I do, Jack?" she asked, all traces of humor gone. "I mean, I know I lost my temper and that was wrong but, outside of that… I don't think I'm in the wrong here."

"If it helps, I don't think you're wrong either."

"So what do I do? I mean I've tried giving her time, I've been patient, I've been understanding, I've tried to find a balance and none of it works… It's like she wants me to somehow erase the past six years so we can just start over."

"I know and, unfortunately, sis, I don't know what to tell you."

"Fat lot of help you are," she whined.

"Look, when I talked to her tonight, she seemed like she was starting to understand… So maybe instead trying to find a balance you need to do what you did tonight. Not the yelling part but the taking the stand part, you know?"

"Mabye… I'm going to hit the sack, I've got an early start tomorrow. Night Jack."

"Night Fi."

* * *

Fi sat in front of her vanity, her shaking hand brushing the same section of white hair over and over and over; black lifeless eyes stared back at her, oblivious to the silent tears pouring out of them.

"Love," came a voice to her side as a pair of warm hands took the brush from her cold ones. "It's time to go."

"I… I can't do this. I don't know how to… to be without her, Dorian… she was half of me, how do I live without that, without her?" asked her surprisingly steady if quiet voice. "I feel dead, and now I'm supposed to go to her funeral and…. And speak, and be strong… and lead them all through this… past this, and I don't know how to do that, I… I can barely get one foot in front of the other… I can't do this Dorian."

"You don't have a choice, love," he told her his gentle voice contrasting with his harsh words. "Regardless of how you feel, you aren't dead, and so you must do what the living do- survive… Right now you are not Fiona, the hurting girl who lost her twin. You don't have that luxury. You are Fiona, the Honored Priestess needed by her people. They won't make it through this without you, love."

"Why?" she demanded harshly, turning to look at him. "Why did she have to die? Why didn't you save her too?"

"We've been over this, love," he said, sounding tired.

"It doesn't make sense, you're powerful-"

"Not powerful enough. The two of you were on death's door. What I did took precious time and a lot of power… even my magic is only capable of so much."

"Than what bloody good is it?" she snapped, standing up and turning away from him.

"You don't mean that, Fi."

"Yes, I do. We've been through so much, survived so much and for it to end like this. It's not fair!" she told him, her voice breaking.

"No, it's not."

"She should be alive!"

"But she isn't. Fiona, I had to make a horrible choice, and I will live with the guilt of that for the rest of my life, but I can't change the facts for you. You are alive, she is not. I could only save one of you. I chose you, your people need-"

"Don't! Don't make this about them," she choked out. "You chose me, you saved me because I'm your fiancée and you know it. And… and… you should have saved her," she sobbed, her grief breaking through. "Because she was… was the best. She was good and k-kind and… and she should be alive… she deserved it!"

"Ssshhh," he soothed, turning her around and wrapping his arms around her. "I know."

"Don't let me go, Dorian. I w-won't survive loosing you both."

"I would never let you go, love," he assured.

"B-but, I just have this horrible feeling and-"

"Fiona," he said sharply, tightening his hold on her. "I am not going anywhere! I promise."

She nodded, burying her face in his chest; his strong arms around her, holding her together. And then he started pulling away. She tried to grab hold of him but her hands just passed right through him. She started to hyperventilate, calling his name. But he couldn't hear her, she couldn't hold him, he just kept fading away.

Fiona sat bolt upright with a scream. A moment later a man had burst through the door.

"What is it, love? What happened?" Dorian asked, brushing her sweat drenched hair out of her face.

"N-nothing, just a dream… It was just a dream," she told him, leaning into his embrace.

"Sounded more like a nightmare, love."

"That too, I need some water," she told him, letting him help her up.

"I think you need something a little stronger than that."

She nodded, then noticing her sweat soaked pajamas, said "I'm going to step into the bathroom first, can you get me another nightgown?"

"Sure, love," he said, looking concerned.

Not long later she was in the living room, on his lap, and sipping her tea, which he had added a shot of whiskey to.

"Do you want to talk about it, love?"

"No," she shuddered, snuggling into him even more, "Just don't let me go."

"Never, love," he promised.

The two heard a loud crash from the entrance way. Feeling disoriented, Fi heard her tea crash to the floor and realized they were standing, Dorian holding her behind him.

"No," he ordered, when she tried to move to the side. Then more loudly, "Who's there?"

"Dorian Drahvind, you are under arrest by order of the Council," said the Soldier, who had stepped into the room.

"On what charges?" he demanded, still keeping Fi protectively behind him.

"You are charged with being a murderer and traitor. You can come with us quietly or we will use force, and I would rather not risk hurting the Priestess."

"Who filed these charges?" Fi demanded, trying to look around her fiancée.

Dorian complied, a little, and loosened his hold enough that she could peak around his arm; though, the majority of her was still behind Dorian.

"Willaim Dysin, Priestess. You don't need to keep the Priestess behind you, Mr. Drahvind, we mean her no harm, so far the evidence only incriminates you."

"Evidence? What evidence?" Fi demanded.

Suddenly, she stumbled forward. Dorian was gone. The guards too. Even her living room. She was in an office surrounded by stacks of filled manila envelopes, each one stamped with the word 'evidence', red as blood. She started to each for one, when it started. Clapping her hands to her ears, Fi fell to her knees. Hundreds of voices, screaming at the top of their lungs, filled her mind as they chanted the same words over and over and over.

"MURDERER!"

"TRAITOR!"

"MURDERER!"

"TRAITOR!"

"Nooooooo," she moaned, rocking back and forth, praying for the voices to end, wishing Dorian was there to hold her. "Noooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!"

* * *

Fiona sat bolt upright to the sound of her alarm clock.

"Turn it off, Fi!" moaned a still half asleep Annie.

Fi shut it off as she slowed her breathing, trying to calm her racing heart. Telling herself it was just a dream and that she couldn't change the past, she stood on shaky legs to go get ready. She had to meet Dorian soon.


	11. Chapter 11

**I'm so sorry it's been a while, I had some serious writers block but I think it's gone now. I have some more chapters I plan to post today once I edit them. I hope you enjoy. Reviews are welcomed and appreciated =)**

"Hello, love," he smiled leaning in and kissing her cheek before she could pull back.

"Dorian, this is business, please don't."

"No reason it can't be pleasure too, love," he answered, opening the car door for her.

"You're incorrigible," she sighed. And, once he'd shut his own door, asked, "Where are we going?"

"You'll see."

"Dorian!"

"Patience, woman," he sighed. "Just trust me."

"Are you kidding me?"

"Are you going to be this unpleasant the entire time?"

"Yes."

"Great."

* * *

They pulled away from the Dregger's house. The twelfth they had been to that day. The interviews were monotonous, but necessary. The rumors, though adamant, were still rumors and the two could not accept them blindly. So, they were stuck interviewing countless Dreggers in the hopes that they could sift through all the information, piece together the truth, and find a solid lead to follow. That was the worst part, they would spend the entire weekend interviewing during the day and at night they still had to sort through, organize, and analyze all the information they had gathered. And, unfortunately, their interviewees tended to be long winded, babbling on and on, so in the end only about ten percent of the information from each one would be useful. It was ridiculous, tedious, mind numbing, and completely necessary. This was why she liked assistants. She hadn't had to do work like this in years, unfortunately Fi didn't trust anyone else enough to recruit them. It was a rather sad comment on where her life and relationships were. She was trying to discover a truth that would shake the foundations of her world and the only person she could trust was her traitorous, murdering, ex-fiancé who spent half his time trying to seduce her. When had her life become so derailed? She fought off a sigh, her life was a jumbled mess. She was going to spend the weekend exhausting herself with this… project, and then spend Monday through Friday exhausting herself at work only to start the process all over again next weekend. Her mother was going to kill her. Scratch that, her whole family was going to kill her, which was just great seeing as how she didn't have enough stress in her life already. She _could_ use magic to try to hold back their concern and suspicions but that would be… tiring. She didn't know what…. Was someone playing with her hair?

"Welcome back, love," smiled Dorian, who was crouched outside her opened passenger door and absently tucking stray hair behind her ear, holding her hands with one of his. "Where'd you go?"

"I… where are we?" she asked, noticing they were parked outside of a restaurant. "Why are we _here_?"

"Your stomach started growling halfway through the last interview love, I couldn't let you starve, especially when you're thin enough as it is," he told her, disapproval in his tone.

"Dorian," she sighed, the prospect of food making her nauseous. "We have work to do."

"And it will wait, while we get some meat on you, love," his voice leaving no room for argument, as he pulled her out of the car and tucked her under his arm. "Don't worry, we'll get you something that won't be to harsh on your stomach, and we can take our time."

"Okay," she caved, knowing Dorian wouldn't be dissuaded and grateful that he, at least, knew her finicky, stress reacting stomach well enough she would most likely manage to eat.

"Two?" asked the waitress, doing a slight double take at Fiona's hair.

"Yes, thank you," smiled Dorian, playfully twirling a piece of hair in his fingers.

"Alright, well, here you go, and our specials are in the center of the menus, can I get you two anything to drink?"

"Waters, please."

"Certainly, sir."

"What are you in the mood for, love?"

"Nothing. Did you want to work through all the interviews tonight? Or just make a dent?"

"Oh, come now Fi, they've got a lot of stuff here, I'm sure you'll find something. Have you looked at the soups, love?"

"No, because I'm not hungry," she told him, her stomach growling loudly in protest. Blushing, she said, "I was thinking we should get through as much as we can tonight, because we don't want to fall behind. Plus we always work better together."

"I was thinking you might like their chicken alfredo," he said.

"Dorian this isn't funny."

"Of course it isn't. Food is serious business, so I'd appreciate it if you would focus, love."

"Dorian, this is not the time-"

"Actually, it is. There is a time and place for everything. Earlier it was time to work, and now it is time to eat. What are you going to have?"

"Dorian, I'm not-" Fi started but broke off when her stomach let out another rumble.

"Yes, you are, love. Relax. The pasta will be easy on your stomach, we'll eat slow and you'll be fine. And we will talk about work when we get back to my place," he told her, a note of finality to his voice.

"Alright, you two ready to order?" asked the waitress, setting the water glasses down.

"Yes, I'd like the steak marinara with the burgundy, and she'll have the chicken alfredo with the chardonnay," he ordered, handing over his I.D.

"Certainly, sir,"she smiled, handing back his I.D. "Ma'am, I need to see your I.D."

"Oh, yea, sorry," said Fi, quickly fishing hers out.

"Alright, I'll have it out to you soon," she smiled.

"So, how are things being back in the states, love?"

"You're hopeless," she sighed, resting her chin in her upturned palm.

"One of the many reasons you love me," he smiled.

"And you're an endless flirt," she smiled, not bothering to contradict him. "Things are fine."

"Wrong, try again."

"Dorian, save it. I'm fine. Things are fine. The _only_ thing not fine is that we're here wasting time instead of working."

"Does it make it easier?"

"Does what make what easier?" she snapped.

"Burying yourself in work, does it make it easier to ignore all the bad crap in your life?" he clarified.

"Dorian, I…"

"Come on, love, we don't lie to each other. Never have. No matter what's happened to us, even when things were at their worst, we never lied to each other."

"I don't trust you, Dorian."

"I know, do you need to?"

"I don't know."

"Who do you trust more than me that you can actually talk to?"

"That's not fair," she told him, crossing her arms.

"No it's not, but that doesn't mean it isn't a valid point, love."

"Fine, I don't trust you, but I do trust you more than anyone else in my life right now," she conceded. "And no, things aren't fine, I'm not fine. And yes, filling my time with work does make it easier to ignore all my crap."

"Now was that so hard, love?" he smiled.

"What about you?"

"What about me?"

"Don't even, if I have to be honest, then so do you. How are things for you?"

"Well, considering that I'm blacklisted in most of our community, I'd say not so great."

"Don't look at me like that!"

"Like what?" he asked with false innocence.

"Like it's my fault."

"You _could_ clear me, love."

"Dorian," she sighed. "There may not be enough evidence to convict you, but there isn't enough to clear you either."

"You carry a lot of weight, Fiona."

"Not anymore."

"You could if you wanted to."

"Don't do this to me, Dorian, please. I won't go there, don't ask me to."

"Alright, so we have the chicken alfredo for you, and the steak marinara for you," smiled the waitress, setting down their dinners and drinks.


	12. Chapter 12

**Hope you enjoy, as always reviews are always wanted and appreciated. And agian, Don't own anything.**

Fi stifled a yawn as she met with the realtor. She was exhausted, but she had to go back to work after signing the papers. She really needed to pull another all-nighter but knew she wouldn't manage it. She had been pulling too many of them lately and was at her breaking point. She wanted to kill Will. He might have given her the go-ahead to work with Dorian but he was doing everything he could to let her know that he and the council were pissed. In other words, he was drowning her in work.

"Are you sure you don't want me to show it to you, Miss Phillips? I mean it's a pricey investment and you haven't even viewed the place," pressed the realtor.

"I'm sure, now where do I need to sign?"

"But Miss-"

"Ma'am, I appreciate the concern but the price isn't an issue for me and really it's just a place to sleep for now, if I decide I don't like it later, I'll sell it," she shrugged. "Now, where do I sign?"

It really was just a place to sleep, sadly. She never left the office before ten and she had to be back there by eight, which really sucked when your commute was an hour. At least having a place a block from the office would help with that. As for her weekends, well, they were devoted to her research with Dorian, which was making no headway. They'd been at it for close to two months now and they were still mired down in the preliminary research. It also meant, more often than not, she crashed at his place too tired to drive. She even had drawer space there, the only draw back was the couch, it was hell on her back because despite Dorian's promises to be a gentleman she refused to share a bed with him. Sleeping in the same bed as her ex-fiancé when they weren't romantically involved was a can of worms she did not want to open. Granted, he had offered to take the couch instead but she felt bad perpetually forcing him to sleep on the couch in his own home. Not that her refusal had done anything, after seeing how stiff she was the first weekend, Dorian had taken matters into his own hands. She'd fall asleep on the couch and, inevitably, wake up, alone, in his bed. Still, she refused to willingly take his bed from him, if he wanted to continually move her do to his misplaced sense of chivalry that was his concern. She wasn't going to make it easy on him and she certainly didn't find it romantic!

"Alright, that covers it, here's your copy of everything," smiled the realtor, " and you can move in starting tomorrow. Oh, and your keys."

"Th-thanks," yawned Fi, pushing the folder into her computer bag and the keys into her purse.

Fi stood and quickly gripped the back of the chair, waiting for the room to stop spinning. She really needed to sleep.

"Are you alright, Miss Phillips?"

"Oh I'm fine, just stood up too quickly," Fi smiled. "Thanks again."

Ignoring the nauseous feeling in the pit of her stomach, Fi headed out in search of a very large cup of very strong coffee before heading back to work .

* * *

"Fi?... Fiona? Come on Fi, wake up."

"Wha?" mumbled Fi, trying to figure out what the rocking sensation was.

"You need to wake up Fiona!" said Will, shaking her again.

"Hm? Ima awake," she murmured, forcing her eyes open.

It took a few moments for her eyes to adjust and realize that Will was crouched by her desk, which she was resting her head on. She jerked up.

"I…" she paused, peeling off the piece of paper that had gotten stuck to her face. "Sorry. What time is it?"

"Eight-thirty."

"Crap," she groaned running her fingers through her hair.

"How long were you out for?"

"Forty minutes or so, I think."

"Maybe that's your body telling you to take a break," he suggested.

"Maybe I'll take it up with my boss, seeing as he's the one giving me all the work I'm trying to get through," she grimaced. "I'm not super woman Will, even I can't go twenty-four-seven non stop."

"I know Fi, and I'm sorry but you're the best, I don't trust anyone else with the jobs I'm giving you."

"Please, we both know why you're giving me all this work," she snapped.

"Fi, I meant what I said. However much I might disapprove of your weekend activities, I am not trying to punish you for them," he told her. Then wilting a little under her glare amended, "Well, not completely. I may be breathing down your neck, Fi, but the council is breathing down mine, too. They are… less then happy with your display of power, a few months back. They want you kept in line, and you should be grateful they've left me to do it. My methods are downright pleasant in comparison to what they've suggested, Fi."

"Kept in line?" she bristled. "And just what methods did they have in mind?"

"Let it go, Fi," he warned, sounding tired.

"No."

"Fiona, the council demands order and obedience from our kind, and you defy that at every turn-"

"I do not!"

"Yes, you do! You may comply with their wishes in the end Fi, but when you disagree with them you make it abundantly clear."

"That's called having an opinion."

"The council doesn't want you to have an opinion, let alone do they care what it is!"

"Well then maybe they should have chosen someone else!"

"They didn't have a choice, Fi!" he yelled.

"And neither did I!" she yelled back. "I never chose any of this. I tried my best to get out but that obviously didn't work! I am not meant to be tamed!"

"Unfortunately for you, the council disagrees and if you don't start toeing the line a little more, they'll not only tame you they'll break you!"

"I'd like to see them try," she scoffed.

"Careful what you wish for Fiona," he said, somewhat deflated. "Look, I know you're unhappy with me but I am trying to look out for you, you're just making it extremely difficult."

"I know," she said, her anger receding- her screwed up life wasn't his fault, mostly.

"And I can't protect you from everything, especially if you don't start being more careful."

"I know," she told him sadly.

"Are you coming home?" he asked, concerned.

"No, I've got a lot still to do tonight," she told him.

"I'm sorry Fi, a couple more weeks and things will die down some, get back to a normal pace, okay?"

"Yeah, sure," she shrugged, "and then something else will come up. Just the way our lives work in this business."

"If it helps any, I really am sorry, about all of it. If I can do anything?"

"Just don't hurt my mom."

"That's the last thing I want Fiona, I really do care about her."

"Good, it's been too long since she's had someone to make her happy like you do."

"You two will sort things out, you know."

"Sure," she snorted, "Oh, here, it's my preliminary findings on that Native American sight."

"Thanks," he said taking the folder. "I'll see you at home."

* * *

"Here," said Fi, setting down a cup of coffee on the back patio table.

"Thanks, baby. Don't you usually leave by now?"

"Dorian's picking me up a little later today."

"For an ex, Fiona, you two are spending a lot of time together," her mother pointed out.

"I know. It's just work."

"And you wish it was more?"

"No, yes, maybe," sighed Fi. "I don't know what I want. My head knows we shouldn't be together but…"

"Your heart maybe wants to be with him?"

"Maybe," she conceded, taking a sip of her coffee.

"Fiona, are you falling in love with him again?"

"I'm not so sure I ever stopped loving him," she answered, trying to keep the emotion out of her voice and failing.

"How serious were you two, baby?"

"We were engaged," said Fi, her voice breaking slightly.

Molly stared at her daughter, trying to keep the shock off her face and reminding herself that she didn't tell Fi about her engagement either.

"Baby if you still love him and you were engaged before, maybe it's worth trying to sort out? The heart isn't just a switch you can turn on and off."

"It's just… too complicated."

"All good relationships are, Fi. Any relationship worth having is hard; you have to fight for it."

"I'm not sure the fight is worth it."

"Well, baby, that's something you have to come to terms with because staying in limbo with him, isn't good for you, either of you… Just, don't let go of this relationship if it means to you what I think it does because in the end, all the fears, all the complications, all the hardships, they're worth it, I promise."

"I wish I could believe that," said Fi, her voice bitter.

"Well baby, whatever you decide, just be sure."

Fi nodded and pushed the folder she had been carrying towards Molly, "What do you think?"

"It's beautiful," said Molly looking at images and floor plans of the spacious apartment.

"I bought it."

Molly nodded.

"Mom, I'm not trying to hurt you, I just…"

"Have grown-up. I know, baby. I know haven't made things easy on you, and I don't want to be difficult it's just… when I agreed to let you go live with your aunt, it was like I lost you, for six years, and that was hard. And then I got you back only I didn't because you had grown up, with responsibilities, and priorities I didn't want you to have. You were right, I wanted my fifteen year old Fiona, I wanted back the time we lost and I hated that we couldn't have that. Fi, I'm not saying things are going to get better between us overnight, but I'm going to try, okay?"

"Thank you, mom."

"So, how far is it from the office?"

"About ten minutes."

"That'll be good for you… When are you moving?"

"I packed up my stuff this morning, Dorian and I going to drop it off on our way… Mom, it's not like I'm never going to be over here again."

"It feels that way."

"I'm sorry… Maybe, who knows, maybe things will be easier when we're not living together anymore?"

"Maybe… So, have you picked out furniture and all that stuff yet."

"No, I mean, I ordered a bed, but as for the rest," she shrugged. "I've still got a couple weeks before my schedule calms down, which means it's going to be a while before I'm there for more than a few hours at night. I'll worry about it then."

"How much time till Dorian gets here?"

"About fifteen minutes, why?"

"Because you still need some basics- towels, mugs, bedding. I've got some spares I can pack up for you. Actually I think I have a spare coffee maker, and some paper plates I can send you with."

"Thanks, mom," smiled Fi.

"It's what moms are for, baby.

* * *

"You seemed in a better mood today," observed Dorain as the two of them sat at his dining room table at one in the morning.

"My mom and I, we started fixing stuff this morning."

"Even with you moving out?"

"Yeah," she smiled.

"Good," smiled Dorian as he stood up, "You want more coffee?"

"Yes, please," she yawned.

"Be right back," he said, yawning as well and grabbing their mugs.

Fi rubbed her eyes as the words blurred with her tiredness. She couldn't afford to lose focus now, they were close, she could feel it. She started to re-read the paragraph, knowing she hadn't taken any of it in the first time but paused half way through.

"Dorian!" she called.

"Yes, love?" he said, setting her mug down.

"Read this," she told him handing over the paper, and gratefully taking a gulp of her coffee.

"My God," he murmured, hurrying over to his bookshelf, and grabbing an ancient looking tome.

Balancing it precariously on the arm that was holding his coffee, he frantically flipped through the pages. Finally, he stopped and started reading through it, following the words with his finger. A smile began to spread over his face and he hurried back to her.

"I think this is it, Fi, I think this is what we've been looking for," he told her excitedly, placing the book in front of her.

Fi read where he indicated, smiling as well. This _was_ it, what they had spent weeks searching for. They finally had their lead.


	13. Chapter 13

**Hope you enjoy, hope you review, don't own.**

Fi slowed to a walk at the track. She had missed going for runs but was, sorely, out of shape and practice- two miles had tired her out when she used to be able to do five. She looked over at Carey and Jack, who were on their last lap, grateful that she and Dorian had decided to take this Sunday off- it had been a while since she had been able to spend anytime with her family, especially Jack. Granted, he was busy too, having started a new job, and planning a wedding, but still, she had missed him. She reached the fence where she had left her water bottle and bent down to take a drink before she stretched.

"You're a difficult woman to track down, Priestess," a voice hissed behind her.

Fi dropped the water bottle and stood, turning as she did so, and turned right into his fist. Pain exploded behind her eye as her body hit the ground, her face breaking the fall. Before she could recover, a booted foot connected with her ribcage. She winced. He didn't let up, either. She tried to focus, to clear her mind, but the jarring pain of his heavy foot in her ribs kept distracting her. The fifth time he hit her she cried out at the feel and sound of something cracking. As nauseating pain spread through her, Fi heard Jack and Carey shouting. She looked up to see them running towards her from across the expansive field. Crap. She had to stop him before the boys got there, and it was too risky to use magic. As his foot headed towards her, again, she grabbed it and yanked. The man stumbled, giving her time to get up. Unfortunately, he recovered in enough time to grab her by her hair once she had gotten to her knees.

"I don't think so, Priestess. The price on your head is too good for me to be taken out that easily."

Fi stowed the information away for later and turned, ramming the heel of her palm into her groin with as much force as she could muster. He grunted and loosened his hold. She pulled free and stood. Unfortunately, just as she gained her footing, his hand wrapped around her throat and she was shoved against the fence. He grabbed both her hands with his other and raised them above her head. She frantically tried to call on her magic, or utter a spell as he cut off her oxygen supply but it was like trying to cup water; every time she got a hold of it, it drained away.

"Don't bother, Priestess," the man sneered increasing the pressure on her throat- she started seeing black spots. "I've got a helpful little talisman, that won't let you use your magic on me."

Frantic, as she felt herself starting to fall unconscious, she swung out with her leg, once again catching him in the groin, and, once again, his grip loosened. She ripped her hands free and, grabbing the hand at her throat with her right one, she slammed her left hand into his elbow. She felt it break as the hand that was choking her was forced away. Fi dropped to the ground, spluttering for air. She kicked out hearing the man fall to the ground, right as footsteps sounded behind her.

"Fi!" came Jack and Carey's voice at once.

Though her vision was still blurry, she could make out her attacker scrambling to his feet and running.

"Who was that?"

"What happened?"

Jack helped her into a sitting position, catching her ribcage. She cried out, her voice raspy.

"Crap."

"Yea, he was kicking her pretty bad," said Carey, pulling up her shirt. "Crap."

"Oh man, we gotta get her to the hospital," said Jack.

Fi looked down to see the deep purple black of a bruise already spreading across her ribcage. She didn't protest the hospital, quite frankly pain killers would be welcomed.

"Fi, can you stand up?" asked Jack as Carey pulled her shirt back down.

"Yea," she rasped, trying to push herself to her feet. "Aaahhh."

"Woa, easy sis."

"Yea, Fi, lets take this slow okay?"

Fi nodded, grateful as the guys, slowly, helped her to her feet. The adrenalin was quickly wearing off and the full pain of her injuries was hitting her. She forgot how much broken ribs hurt.

"Not so fast," she scraped out.

"Sorry," said the boys in unison, slowing their pace as they helped her to the car.

Fi laid down in the backseat, trying to slow her breathing but nothing helped ease the pain. She sent Will a txt letting him know there was a price on her head-he could figure out the details- and closed her eyes trying to tune out the guys- Carey pushing the speed limit and telling her they'd be there soon, and Jack frantically trying to get a hold of their mother. She wanted Dorian.

* * *

Will was already at the hospital when the boys arrived with Fi.

"Oh God, Fi, your face," he gasped, when he got a good look at her.

"You should see her ribs," said Carey.

"My face? What's wrong with my face?"

"Nothing you need to worry about now, Fi," said Jack, easing her into a seat.

"Um, yes, it is, where's my purse? I have a mirror in it."

"Still in the car, I'll get it," said Carey.

"Will, I'm gonna keep trying to get a hold of mom."

"Alright, I'll stay with her."

As the boys walked off, Dysin handed her a clipboard with insurance questions and said, "I asked around and I spoke with the council, there is a price on your head, a substantial one, for about a month now."

"Great," she said dryly.

"Oh, I don't know, considering how much it's been upped since last time, it's actually somewhat flattering."

"Remind me to send a thank you note," she snapped. "Are there any leads?"

"We're working on it, in the mean time, the council wants you kept safe."

"Will-"

"They won't budge on it Fi, and I agree with them."

"Great."

"It won't be too bad, I suggested Dorian," said Will, smirking at the shocked expression on her face.

"You what?"

"Well, he was your protection detail last time, and you both get along, and he does his job well."

"But… you…"

"Fiona, I don't hate the man, I don't trust him but I don't hate him. I brought the charges against him because I believed he was guilty."

"And now?"

"Now I don't know what I believe. The point is you believe he is innocent, or, at least, you don't believe he's guilty. And you trust him. That's enough for me."

"Maybe, but they'll never agree to it."

"Who'll never agree to what?" asked Carey holding out her purse, Jack coming up behind him.

"The board," said Will smoothly, "will never agree to Dorian being her bodyguard till things get sorted out."

"Did you say body guard?"

"Yea, this wasn't random," said Fi, digging around for her mirror. "There's a price on my head."

"What?" demanded Carey.

"It's not that out of the ordinary. Fi is an important person in the business world. It's not the first time this has happened, either."

"What? Fiona, you never mentioned anything about that," exclaimed Jack.

"There was no need, you all would have just worried needlessly," said Fi, opening her compact. "Oh. My. God!"

Her left eye and cheekbone were completely black and blue where he had hit her, her skin split and bleeding above her eyebrow. The right side of her jaw was bruised badly and the lip split from where her face had broken her fall. She looked awful and no amount of make up would hide it.

"You still should have told us, Fi. I got a hold of mom, by the way, she should be here soon."

"So will Dorian," smiled Will.

"What!" exclaimed Fi, her head snapping to the side, making her wince. "Ow."

"The board did actually agree, and he's on his way."

"How?"

"I can be very persuasive when I want to be."

"Thank- you," she said quietly, putting away her compact, planning on getting the details later.

"As long as it keeps you alive, shall I take that up for you?" he asked, nodding to the clipboard.

She nodded.

They had been waiting for a half hour, when Molly came bursting in.

"Oh my God, baby, your face," she said, kneeling down in front of her daughter.

"It looks worse than it is, mom," said Fi, trying to keep the pain from her voice.

"Nice try, Fiona. How long have you been waiting?"

"A little over a half hour."

"I'm gonna go talk to them."

"Mom, no, it's fine, don't cause a fuss."

"You're in pain Fiona, I'll cause whatever fuss I need to," said Molly, standing.

"Molly," intervened Will, grabbing her hand, "just sit with her okay? The nurses are moving as fast as they can.

To Fiona's relief, Molly scowled but conceded and sat down.

"I sent Irene and Ned to your place; they're getting you stocked up on somethings- meals, painkillers, tea, and such."

"Thanks mom," said Fi, leaning her head on Molly's shoulder.

"Of course, baby."

* * *

Several hours later, Fi was sitting on a hospital bed behind a curtain, in just her bra waiting for the doctor to come back and wrap her ribs, and give her something for pain. Actually, she wasn't that picky, she didn't care what they gave her as long as it knocked her out. She sighed, and then winced. Broken ribs really sucked.

"Where is she?" came Dorian's angry voice through the curtain.

"She's in there waiting for the doctor to finish up. She'll be out soon," explained Jack. "Wait, she's not dressed!"

Dorian wasn't inclined to wait though, and moment later, he came through the curtain.

"It's fine, Jack," called Fi, so he didn't try to get Dorian out.

"Oh God, love," he said, taking in the bruises littering her body. "Have they given you anything for pain?"

"No, the doc's going to do it when he comes back," she told him, her voice strained.

"They really do take their sweet time," he grumbled, gently brushing hair out of her face to better examine it. "That guy really worked you over."

"Yea… guess I'm more out of practice than I thought."

"We're fixing that, love, as soon as you're healed up.

She nodded, resting her forehead against his.

"You in a lot of pain?" he asked, concern clear in his voice.

"Mm-hm."

"Don't worry, this is going to help with that," said the doctor from behind Dorian, holding up a needle.

* * *

Fi was trying to figure out how she was moving. She definitely wasn't walking; her feet weren't even on the ground. But, she wasn't in the car anymore, either. And yet, she was moving.

"Oh my God," exclaimed Irene.

"Is she alright?" asked Ned.

"She's fine," said Dorian. "The hospital gave her something for pain and it's knocked her for a bit of a loop."

Oh, that was right, Dorian was carrying her. She snuggled into him even more, smiling when she heard him chuckle at her. She didn't care. Dorian had her and therefore everything was right with her world.

"Are you staying the night with her?" asked Irene, eyeing Dorian, confused.

"No," said Molly, sounding somewhat put-out. "Dorian will be though."

"Whose Dorian?" asked Ned.

"We'll explain everything later," answered Will.

"Molly, could you get the covers," called Dorian.

"Yea of course," she said, hurrying into the room.

"Thank you."

Dorian was putting her down. Why was he doing that? She didn't want him to let go of her.

"Love, you have to let go of me. You need to sleep," he told her, prying her hands off.

"But I don't want you to go," she whined, as he pulled off her shoes.

"I'm not going anywhere, love, I'll still be her when you wake."

"Promise?" she murmured

"Promise," he smiled. "Though I do rather wish you had invested in a couch, hardwood floors are not the most comfortable."

"Sleep with me, then," she told him, as pulled the covers up.

"Not tonight."

Molly held in a sigh of relief.

"Why not?" she whined.

"Because," he laughed, "you are tired, and hurt, and drugged, and therefore, not in your right state of mind, I won't take advantage of that."

"But I want you to."

"You'd regret it in the morning, love. But if you want to ask me again tomorrow night, I will be more than happy to oblige."

"Fine," she sighed.

"Sleep well, love," he told her, kissing the top of her head.

"Dorian," called Irene. "We had brought an air mattress and bedding in case Molly was planning on staying but we can leave them for you."

"Thank you," he said, closing the door to her room behind him.


	14. Chapter 14

Fi woke up in a lot of pain. She groaned.

"How're you feeling, love?"

"Like I was hit by a truck," she grumbled, biting her lip as he helped her sit up.

"You look like it too, here," he told her handing her a pill and cup of coffee.

"Thanks."

"Will is going to be here in an hour."

"What for?"

"We sort of have some things to discuss, remember? And we need to go over what we're telling your family."

"Right… God I feel disgusting," she said, glancing down at the sweaty workout clothes she still had on from the night before. "Help me to the bathroom?"

Dorian smiled, and guided her to the bathroom, "Call me if you need any help."

"You'd just love that," she said, shaking her head.

"Well, I certainly wouldn't complain," he smirked, closing the door behind him.

Fi sighed, and winced. Everything hurt. Slowly and painfully, she peeled the clothes off her body and examined herself in the mirror. She really did look like a truck had hit her. Her face was unrecognizably bruised and puffy. There was handprint shaped bruise on her neck and it was swollen. As for her ribs, they so splotched over with countless blue-black bruises that she couldn't see any of her regularly pale skin. Refraining from sighing again, as it hurt, she carefully stepped into the shower, grateful for the soothing hot water.

She took her time, not getting out till Dorian knocked informing her she only had fifteen minutes till Will got there. Grudgingly she got out and, gingerly dried off and dressed. The problem was her hair. She went into the living room.

"Dorian?" she said, holding out the brush, " It hurts to raise my arm."

"Come here, love," he smiled, patting the window seat, and taking the brush.

"Thank-you," she said, as he gently worked through the knots in her long hair.

"Of course, love. Not the first time I've done this for you."

"No it's not," she agreed, remembering the last time she'd banged up her ribs. "You've always taken good care of me."

"When you've let me," he amended.

"Fair enough," she agreed. "Thank you, by the way. For this. For not taking advantage of my offer last night. For trying to keep me safe. For everything."

"Fi, I don't like seeing you hurt. I will always do everything in my power to keep you safe."

"I know, and I know I don't always seem grateful. I am, it's just…"

"It's just you have obligations that don't allow you to put your heart first. You're a Priestess first, a woman second. I know Fi, I've always known, and, contrary to what you think, I understand," he told her, setting down the brush resting his hands on her hips, his chin on the top of her head.

"I wish it could be different," she said sadly.

"I wish a lot of things could be different."

"Will got the council to agree to you though, that's a good sign."

"Does that mean you believe I am innocent?" he asked, sounding anxious.

Before she could answer however, the door bell rang.

"Can you get it?"

"Yeah, love," he sighed, kissing the top of her head.

"How is she?" came Will's voice from the door.

"Sore."

"Could be worse I suppose. Take these?" he asked handing him a couple of folding chairs.

"Yep, she's in the living room."

"Fi, you really need to get some furniture in this place," commented Will.

"You do realize this is the first time I've been here during the day, right? Till now, I haven't needed furniture."

"That's part of what I want to talk to you about," said Will, taking a seat. "I'm going to lighten your work load."

"How?" she asked, as Dorian took her mug.

"Annie has accepted a temporary position as one of your assistants, and I've upped her and Jessa's clearance, temporarily."

"Thank-you," she told him, relief clear on her face.

"I've also arranged it so you can work from home for the next couple of weeks."

"Seriously? Thank you, Will!"

"Yes, well, considering the hospital also diagnosed you as suffering from severe exhaustion, the council agreed that some changes were necessary. I think they finally remembered that you are only human," he smiled.

"About time," she agreed, taking a fresh cup of coffee from Dorian.

"Will?"

"Yes, thank you," he said taking one as well. "Now, Fiona, do you remember what your attacker looked like?"

"Not well. The only time I really got a good look at him was when he was strangling me and well, not having oxygen tends to mess with your eyesight. I can try drawing him, maybe?"

"Here," said Dorian, having already grabbed a pad and pencil.

"Thanks," she said, taking them and closing her eyes.

Uttering a few words, Fi's hand began to fly over the paper unnaturally as the image in her mind was magically copied to the paper. Sure enough, it was somewhat distorted with aspects of it missing.

"Sorry," she said handing over the drawing, "it's the best I can remember."

"We might be able to get something from it," said Will, sounding doubtful.

"Also, I couldn't use my magic."

"How do you mean, love?"

"Every time I tried, I'd get a hold of it and then it would be pulled away. He said he had a talisman that was stopping it."

"That shouldn't be possible though, your magic is too strong."

"It's supposed to be."

"That is something we definitely need to look into," said Will, sounding disturbed.

"So what do _you_ know?" she asked, nervously twirling a piece of hair.

"Someone has put a 500,000 dollar bounty on your head."

"That's double what it was last time," she gasped, paling.

Dorian's jaw tightened as he resisted the urge to go comfort her. He couldn't do that in front of Will. Right now, she was a priestess not the woman he loved. He didn't like it but he at least managed to keep himself in his seat and instead ask, "Do we have any idea who is behind it?"

"No, right now the rumors are all over the place, we're working to narrow it down but it's going to take time. What we _do_ know is that the black market is organizing in the hopes of being able to come after you. We believe the attack yesterday was just a test."

"This is really bad," said Fi, as the severity of the situation settled in.

"What are _we_ doing?" asked Dorian, watching Fi out of the corner of his eye, and trying not to fidget.

"We have our best on this, trying to track down whoever is behind it, but as I said, it's going to take time. And we have you."

"Yeah, just how _did_ you convince the council to let me protect her?"

"It wasn't easy. I pointed out that the Honored Priestess is almost never wrong, Fiona especially, and the fact that she is hesitant to sentence you suggests that we might want to reconsider our… position."

"And they actually listened?" asked Fi, shocked.

"No," snorted Will. "They lost it. When they finally calmed down, I further pointed out that unless they were willing to usurp your authority, Priestess, they had to be patient and trust you, _and_ you've never given them real reason to doubt you. Also, in spite of everything, Dorian has always done all that is within his power to keep you safe, even after… certain unfortunate events, your safety and well being has always been his priority, at the expense of his own. He is the only reason you're alive, several times over. The evidence of the past indicates that despite… possible previous indescretions, we have no reason to doubt that he will keep you safe. They agreed."

"In other words, a blacklisted and accused murderer and traitor is the only one they can trust to keep their precious Priestess safe," Dorian summed up with a bitter chuckle. "The council is seriously screwed up."

"No arguments here," sighed Will.

"Is Will Dysin, the Council's famous errand boy, actually criticizing them?" smirked Dorian.

"I didn't have to speak for you, Dorian." snapped Will.

"You didn't do anything for me, Will. You did it for Fi, which I appreciate but don't pretend this puts us on the same side."

"We've never been on the same side, traitor, I am not confused as to that, I assure you."

"Play nice you two," snapped Fi, who was feeling drowsy from the painkillers, despite her coffee. "I don't have the energy to mediate."

"Sorry," the two muttered, refusing to look at each other.

"Now what did you mean when you said we have Dorian? I understand how that helps defensively but what does it do for our offense."

"We are going to leak the fact that Dorian is your bodyguard again. His reputation will help as it is likely to make people think twice before coming after you. It will also confuse the black market as they believe he is currently ostracized and awaiting his death sentence."

"I am," Dorian interrupted bitterly.

" We hope," continued Will, "that confusion will help bring out leads. What have you done, Dorian?"

"I've already placed a variety of spells around the apartment- protection, alarms, attacks and so on- and I've placed magical weaponry strategically throughout the apartment. When you're feeling better, Fi, I'll point them out to you. Not to mention, I've added some more human precations- a regular alarm, some cameras and some human weapons."

"When did you do that?" asked Fi.

"While you were sleeping," he smiled at her.

"Thank-you. What are we telling my family?"

"Short version? I've told them that you play an important role in our company and have been working on some vital mergers and contracts. This has made you a prime target as many don't want to see those mergers and contracts succeed and with you out of the way they believe they will fall through. Therefore, someone has placed a price on your head. To keep you safe and protect their interests, the board has provided you with a protection detail, Dorian. I told them that he used to work for us before and has guarded you in the past; however, there was a falling out several months ago. In spite of that, they know that he is the best option for keeping you safe and have grudgingly hired him back-"

"Wait, am I getting paid for this?"

"Of course."

"Well, that's nice of them."

"Anyway, I also told them the details of the 'falling out' are confidential and legally cannot be discussed, so they won't question us about it, but that he truly is the best."

"That's good," she yawned. "So does that take care of everything?"

"I think so. Jessa and Annie are going to stop by tomorrow, drop off your work and pick up their marching orders."

"Okay."

"Do you want me to leave the folding chairs?"

"No that's okay," she said, fighting to stay awake. "I'm going to order furniture today. Speaking of which, can you grab my computer for me, Dorian?"

"No. You can do that later," he said, taking her mug and setting it on the floor.

"So what am I supposed to do now?"

"Sleep."

"I'll sleep later," she insisted. "I just need another cup of coffee."

"No, you'll sleep now, love. You can barely keep your eyes open," he said picking her up. "Your body needs rest."

"Fine," she caved, her head dizzy from being moved.

"Feel better, Fi," called Will, heading towards the door, "Molly, said she was going to call you later, by the way."

"Okay," she mumbled, as Dorian put her to bed.

**Well, hop you enjoyed the updates, once again, sooooooo sorry it took so long but now I once again have an idea of where my story is going :) As always, would love reviews. **


	15. Chapter 15

DJxDANGAAxCRNPPS: Thank you so much for the review, I'm glad your enjoying it. I like making them protective, especially sense Fi has a habit of running off to do whatever without always thinking it through =) I just hope it doesn't come off as too cheesy, lol. Thanks again.

And thanks to everyone who follows it and puts me on author alert and so on, hope you continue to enjoy it.

And, no, I do not own anything... =(

R&R Please.

* * *

"No, absolutely not."

"What? Why not?"

"Are you blind? It's awful."

"It's got character!"

"Is that what you call it?"

"Yes! What would you call it?"

"Ugly," said, Dorian, reaching carefully around Fi, so as not to jostle her, and clicked the mouse. "Now _that_ is a good chair."

"No."

"What? Why not?"

"Because it's leather! It screams bachelor pad."

"It's better than what you were looking at," he insisted.

"No," she snorted. "It's not, not by a long shot."

"Fine, next," he said as she clicked the mouse.

"I like it!" said the two together.

"That's everything then," said Fi, ordering the chair. "By tomorrow night, this apartment will actually look like people live here."

"Good," he said, as the door bell rang. "Perfect timing."

Dorian helped Fi sit up a little so he could climb out from behind her, careful not to knock her too much, and went to get the door. Fi slowly climbed off the bed and went to her purse. She had to dig around a bit but finally managed to find her cigarettes and lighter. She hadn't had one since before her run the day before and was seriously going through withdrawal. She stepped out onto the balcony, and, carefully, lowered herself down, leaning against the wall. She closed her eyes as she inhaled, savoring the taste.

"Love?"

"Outside," she called.

"You okay with soda?" he asked, closing the door behind him and turning around, his face falling.

"Fine with me," she said, looking up at him. "What's wrong?"

"You're smoking," he grimaced.

"Yeah."

"You quit."

"I restarted."

"When? Why?"

Fi shrugged, wincing at the movement and taking another drag off her cigarette.

"Fi!" he growled, his patience running out.

"What? Are you _seriously_ going to get on me for smoking? _You're_ the one who got me started in the first place!"

"And _you_ hated it, it's why you quit, remember? It's why you got me to quit."

"Well, I don't hate it anymore. You want one?"

"No."

She shrugged and again regretted it.

"Fi, why did you start again? When did you start again?"

"Does it matter?"

"Yes," he insisted

"Let's just eat dinner, I'll put it out if you want," she offered, hoping he'd drop it.

"What I want is for you to answer my question."

"The night you got arrested, happy?" she snapped, angry at him for pushing it, it wasn't his business.

"No," he said sitting down across from her.

"Then you should have left well enough alone," she told him, taking another drag on her cigarette.

"You shouldn't have restarted because of _that_, Fi," he tried to reason.

"What exactly was I supposed to do, Dorian? The council wouldn't let me be involved in anything! I spent three hours at their office just for them to tell me to go home. I couldn't get _anything _out of them, and trust me I tried. They just said they'd call me in a few days, and that was it! They dismissed me like I was nothing more than some insignificant new hire.

"_And_ when I was leaving, do you know what they said to me? 'Considering it's your _fiancé _who is responsible for all this, we can't begin to imagine what a precarious position that must put you in. Why don't you just step back and leave things to us.' In a three day period my sister was buried, my fiancé was arrested for her murder and the betrayal of our people, _and_ the Council stopped trusting me! I couldn't do anything and I had no one to go to! So, yeah, I had a cigarette, heck, I had a whole pack! Sue me!" she ranted.

Dorian's face darkened as he busied himself with the pizza, he didn't say anything. Immediately, regretting her outburst, Fi leaned her head back puffing on her cigarette.

"Here," he said coldly, holding out a paper plate with pizza on it.

"I'm not hungry," she told him, sick with herself for having brought it all up to him, knowing she'd hurt him.

"I don't care. You need food," he said, his tone clipped. "Eat."

She nodded sullenly and took the plate.

They ate in silence.

* * *

Fi sat in silence as Dorian finished rewrapping her ribcage. The tension between them was palatable and the two had maintained a strained silence since dinner the night before. He finished and went into the kitchen. Fi went to find sweats.

She had hurt him, and the worse part was it had been intentional. She had just been so angry at him, that he would get upset with her when he didn't know anything about it. So she had hit below the belt, knowing it would make him back off. They had never talked about that night before, and she had regretted her words the moment she'd said them. But, regret or not, she _had _said them and couldn't take them back. She had hurt him, and now he was angry; though, whether he was angry with himself or with her, she didn't know. And she didn't know what to say to fix it. So she'd said nothing instead, and he'd followed her lead.

Fi bit her lip as she bent to pull on her pants. Bending was not fun. Tying the drawstring, she grabbed a tank top. She slid her arms in, and started to raise them, in order to pull it on the rest of the way. She froze, moaning, as it sent pain through her. She heard someone chuckle behind her.

"Here," said Dorian.

Lowering her arms, he cautiously pulled the top over her head and tugged it gently into place.

"Um, thanks," she said, blushing.

"Where's your brush?"

"It's alright, you don't have to-"

"Fi," he said impatiently, "you couldn't even get your shirt on. And we both know your hair is going to drive you crazy if you leave it unbrushed. Where's your brush?"

"Bathroom counter," she sighed.

Fi made her way to the window seat in her room, and sat. He had broken their silence, that was good. She just wasn't where to go from there. She felt his fingers in her hair as he started brushing a section. She chewed on her lip unsure of what to do. He didn't say anything else.

A few minutes later he set the brush down and left. Fi put it back in the bathroom and went in search of him. The truth was, she knew what she needed to do, she just didn't want to do it. She found him in the kitchen pouring coffee.

"Dorian?"

"Yes?"

"I'm sorry."

"Thank you… I shouldn't have pressed you… I…" he trailed off.

"Can we just, you know, forget it happened?" she asked.

"Yeah," he said, relieved, handing her a cup of coffee, his usual demeanor returning. "Do you need a pain pill, love?"

"A half a one, I don't want to sleep the day away again," she told him, their awkwardness completely gone.

"Is it so difficult for you to let yourself rest?" he asked, shaking his head as he cut a pill in half.

"Do you really need to ask?" she smiled. "Besides, I don't have to be in bed to rest."

"Your hopeless," he sighed, handing her the pill. "And Jessa and Annie stopped by while you were still asleep. Your stuff is in the office. They said to email them with whatever you need them to do."

She nodded, "You could have woken me up."

"Didn't have the heart," he shrugged. "I know how hard you've been pushing yourself the past few months, love."

She nodded.

"Cold pizza?" he asked, opening the fridge.

"The breakfast of champions," she smiled, leaning against the counter.

"Here, love," he said, handing over a slice on a piece of paper towel.

"Thanks," she set down her coffee.

"What time should the all the stuff start getting here?"

"Um," she said, chewing slowly as she pulled her phone out of her pocket. "A half hourish?"

"I still can't believe what you paid for overnight," he said, shaking his head.

"I didn't want to wait," she shrugged, forcing down another bite.

"Patience never was your strong suit," he chuckled.


	16. Chapter 16

DJxDANGAAxCRNPPS: Yay, I'm glad you liked it.

R&R please.

* * *

"No, you're supposed to attach _that_ piece first."

"I know what I'm doing, love."

"Yeah, but if you don't attach-"

"Would you stop back seat driving, fi?"

….

"Maybe try to angle it a bit more?"

"I _can't_ angle it any more."

"I told you, you should have taken the door off."

"Love?"

"Yeah?'

"Not helpful."

"Sorry."

….

"_That_ is a thing of beauty."

"I thought you might like it."

"When did you order it?"

"While you were ordering dinner the other night."

"How many inches is it?"

"72."

"High def?"

"Yep."

"I'm in love."

…

"No, I don't like it there."

"Love, I've moved it three times."

"Could you put it on that wall?"

"That's where I first put it!"

…

"This isn't going to work."

"Yes, it will."

"No, it won't. We're going to have to switch the cabinets out."

"Fi! That's what I said to do from the start!"

…

"No a little more to the left… No, wait, that's too far."

"Fi," he groaned, waving his hand and lowering the couch back to the floor. "would you please make up your mind?"

"I just want it in the right spot."

"Come on, love, we both know your going to rearrange it in a month anyway."

"That's completely beside the point."

"Then help me! It's your ribs that are broken not your magic," he snapped.

"I'm busy," she smiled. "Besides, what kind of gentlemen would you be if you had me help you?"

"A tired one. You want it somewhere else, you move it."

"Fine," she sighed, closing her eyes for a moment. She opened them and magically lifted the couch, guiding it with hand movements, "there."

"That's where I first put it!"

"You still like Irish crème creamer, right?" she asked, ignoring his frustration.

"Yeah, why?"

"I'm making a grocery list."

"You are _not_ going to the store. You still get out of breath walking around the apartment."

"It's a large apartment," she argued.

"Fi."

"Fine, my mom offered to go, anyway."

"In other words, she figured you were planning on going and argued with you until you agreed to let her go instead."

"Maybe," she pouted.

"You're hopeless."

"Is there anything you want to add?" she asked, holding out the list.

* * *

"It's open," Fi called at the sound of knocking.

"No, it's not," Dorian corrected. "Be right there."

"It's not?"

"Fiona, love, there's a price on your head, I'm not about to leave your door unlocked," explained Dorian, going to open it.

"Oh, right," she chuckled as he left the room.

"Sorry," said Dorian, opening the door.

"No problemo, dude," said Clue, coming in with an armful of groceries.

"It looks nice, Fi," called Molly, taking in the now furnished apartment.

"Thanks, mo- ah, ow!"

"Wow," commented Clue, as Dorian took off, "the dude moves fast."

"You should have seen him when he came to the hospital, I don't think I've ever seen anyone look that livid," whispered Molly. Then more loudly, "You alright, Fi?"

"She's fine," Dorian called back, sounding somewhat irritated. "She just tried to get up to quickly because heaven forbid the woman remember she's injured."

"Shut up," came Fi's petulant sounding voice.

"Come on, Clue, kitchen's this way," laughed Molly.

"Yes, ma'am," he answered, following Molly. "Wow, this is nice. A balcony too?"

Clue set the groceries down on the kitchen table and went out to the balcony.

"I like the kitchen," called Molly.

"Thanks," said Fi, who was now leaning against Dorian in the doorway. "We're going to paint sometime this week."

"We are?" asked Dorian, raising an eyebrow at her.

"Do you not know me?"

"Yeah," he sighed in defeat. "I must have painted your place in London a half dozen times."

"I think it was closer to full dozen, actually. Sorry," she said sheepishly.

"Does that mean we aren't going to paint this week?" he asked hopefully.

"Of course not," she laughed.

"Fi, are you going to be _able_ to paint this week?" asked Molly, looking doubtful.

Dorian laughed, "When she says 'we're' going to paint, she means _I'm_ going to be on a step ladder trying not to fall, while _she_ sits on the couch deciding if it needs another coat of paint."

"Rough luck man," said Clue coming back in from the balcony. "Oh man, Fi, your face!"

Fi shrugged, and then winced.

"Her ribcage is worse," said Dorian darkly, having noticed her flinch.

"Let it go, Dorie," she said soothingly, squeezing his hand, not noticing Molly's pointed stare.

"How much more is left?" he asked Clue more lightly.

"A lot."

"I'll help you with it," said Dorian, and pressing a kiss to her temple, "show your mum the place, love."

"Are you up to showing me around?" asked Molly, as the front door shut behind the guys.

"Yeah. I'm fine, _really_, as long as I go slow… Very slow," she amended unhappily.

Molly laughed at her daughter's petulance, and followed her through the expansive apartment.

"Fi, is it the whole floor?" she asked, after seeing the third guest bedroom.

"Yeah."

"My God, I think this is bigger than my house."

"It's not that big," she laughed, wincing. "At least, I don't think it is."

"Baby, don't the pain killers do anything?"

"They do a lot, trust me. I barely move without them."

"But if you're still in pain, maybe they should give you something stronger?"

"They're plenty strong, promise, but I'm only taking half at a time or I don't function."

"Fi, you don't need to function," Molly reprimanded.

"Mom, I don't like lying around doing nothing."

"No, you never did," she sighed, following Fi into the office.

"In a week or so, I'll have the bookshelves filled," she said, gesturing to the empty floor to ceiling bookshelves, lining the wall.

"Fi, honey," hedged Molly, " you and Dorian?"

"What about us?"

"Have things changed between you two since we talked?"

"No," answered Fi, baffled by her mother's questioning

"For a girl who's not interested in restarting the relationship, you two sure are acting like a couple," Molly explained.

Fi frowned, "I didn't realize we… were coming off that way."

"You are. It's obvious he still loves you, Fi," insisted Molly, throwing caution to the wind. "You should have seen his face when he got to the hospital the other day. It was frightening."

"We were together for five years, mom, we were engaged," she shrugged. "Ow. And old habits are hard to break… right or wrong, there are still feelings there… on both sides. I didn't think we were acting that way but, it makes sense that we would, doesn't it?"

"Yeah, it does. So what does that mean for you two?"

"I don't know."

"Well, considering he's living here, baby, I'd suggest you find out, soon."

"Easier said than done," Fi grimaced.

"Hey, there you two are. The groceries are up, and Dorian wants to know where you want stuff, Fi," said Clue, sticking his head into the office.

"Okay, we'll be right there."

"Cool," he said, heading back toward the kitchen.

"Oh, here," said Molly, as Fi started to leave, holding out a credit card with a receipt wrapped around it.

"Thanks," she said, putting it in her pocket. "And thanks for picking it all up."

"Of course, baby. I told you, that's what moms are for," she smiled, following her daughter to the kitchen.

"Hey, Clue, we should get going, I'm working on wedding stuff with Gabe tonight.

"Sure."

"Speaking of which, Fi, in a couple weeks we need to go get your bridesmaid dress fitted."

"Yeah, okay," said Fi, gingerly giving her mom a hug a goodbye.

"Rest up, baby," Molly implored.

"I will."

"Bye Fi," said Clue, carefully hugging her goodbye as well. "Take care of yourself, okay?"

"I will."

Molly and Clue headed out of the apartment, hearing the lock click behind them.

"I can't believe some jerk did that to her," said Clue, angry, as they headed down to the car, he had been told it was bad but knowing and seeing were two different things.

"I know," Molly agreed darkly. "I'd love to get my hands on the guy."

"It's like she doesn't catch a break. The first day off she's had in months and that happens," he sighed, shaking his head. Then, "Um, Molly, Fi and Dorian, are they, like, a couple or something?"

"Fi and Dorian are… complicated," she sighed. "I don't really know what they are… I don't think they know what they are."

"Right," he said slowly, still sounding confused.

* * *

Hope ya'll enjoyed.


	17. Chapter 17

"Oh God," groaned, Dorian as Fi walked back into the waiting room. "You've got that Cheshire grin."

"I get to go back to work," she sing-songed.

"Great," he rolled his eyes, "now, not only do I have to keep, God only knows, who from killing you but I've also got to keep _you _from killing you."

"Poor baby," she said, with mock sympathy. "It also means you have to stop coddling me."

"First of all, love, I have not been coddling you, and secondly, no, it doesn't mean that at all," he told her, snatching the paper from her hands.

"Excuse me!"

"And thirdly, he has _not_ given you the all clear. According to this, you can go back to work_ if_ you take it easy, and you can resume _light _activity."

"Either way," she said grumpily, crossing her arms, "it gets me out of the house."

* * *

**I know, it's appallingly short. Sorry =( It's just I needed/ wanted this scene to show the passage of time and provide an update as to how Fi is healing. That said it just didn't seem to fit in either the previous chapter or the coming chapter. It was just too random sounding and messed with the flow. So I decided to let it be random all on its lonesome and make it its own chapter. The next chapter is longer, promise.**


	18. Chapter 18

**See this one's longer =) not as long as I would like but longer, and I'll have another chapter coming soon. Well hope ya'll enjoy, please R&R**

* * *

Dorian was getting ready for bed when he heard the Fi's scream. Throwing himself out of his room, he raced to her bedroom. Dorian burst through the door to find Fi twisting and turning in her bed, another scream wrenched from her. The furniture and other nick-knacks in the room were rattling with the amount of magic emanating from her.

"Fi, love?" he said worriedly, sitting on the bed.

There was no color in her face, and her yells were becoming raspy. He was also afraid that she'd re-hurt her ribs with the way her body was tossing. He tried to restrain her gently, taking care not to hurt her still injured body in the process, it wasn't easy.

"Fi, love? It's alright," -she screamed again-"Come on, honey, it's just a Vision, it'll pass."

Dorian knew from experience that he wouldn't be able to wake her till it had passed, but he could sometimes calm her. He prayed he could this time.

"It's alright. I'm right here, sweetheart, you're not alone, I promise," he told her, the twisting becoming less violent. "That's it, baby, let yourself, relax. You can't fight it. It's easier if you don't fight it, love."

Dorian sat with her for close to an hour, talking non-stop. It helped. Her screams died down to moans, her tossing became occasional jerks. Finally, she jolted upright, gasping for air.

"Fi, baby, it's okay, it's over," he said, cupping her face, relief clear in his voice. "You're awake, sweetheart, you're awake now. It's over."

"Dorian?"

"Yeah, honey, it's me."

"I'm awake?"

"Yeah."

She started to cry.

"I know, love," he said pulling her against his chest, wrapping his arms around her.

"It w-was horrible," she sobbed, cowering into him. "Th-there was s-so much b-b-blood!"

"It's over now, sweetheart, just let it out," he told her, rocking her gently.

It took close to a half hour for Fi to cry herself out, even then she was still shaking.

"Any better, honey?" he asked, tilting her tear stained face up to his.

"N-not really."

"Do you want to talk about it, love?"

"N-NO!" she cried, burying her face in his chest once again.

"Alright, alright," he said, rubbing circles into her back . "Ssshh, love, we won't talk about it."

He felt her nod into his chest.

"Dorie?" she said, her voice small and mumbled.

"Yeah, love?"

"I… I don't want to be alone tonight… would you stay with me?"

"Yeah, sweetheart, I'll stay," he told her, gently sliding Fi over a bit and climbing in with her.

She quickly curled herself up against him, her head resting against his chest. He wrapped his arms around her, holding her tight, though careful not to hurt her sore ribs. She was still so tense.

"Relax love, I'm not going anywhere. Just go to sleep," he said softly.

"I can't."

"Yes, you can," he told her, starting to hum one of her favorite old Irish songs.

"That's cheating," she told him.

He didn't comment, just continued to hum.

"Sing it please?" she asked, snuggling into him.

He did, and it wasn't long before Fi found herself drifting off.

* * *

"You still don't want to talk about it, love?" asked Dorian, walking over to her desk.

"I'm still trying to make sense of it," she said, her head bent over a piece of paper, countless others littering the desk.

"Alright, well dinners rea-" Dorian cut off, his stomach churning as he took in the macabre images she had drawn. "Ready."

"I'm not really hungry," she grimaced, drawing a dismembered arm.

"I wonder why," he said dryly. "Why don't you take a break, love?"

"Can't."

"Why not?"

"I need to figure this out."

"Figure what out, exactly?"

"This!" she gestured at her gruesome drawings. "My Vision."

"This is what you Saw last night?" he asked, understanding why it had left her so disturbed.

She nodded, "It all means something. It always does, and I need to figure it out… The last time…"

"Alright," he agreed, gravely. "What can I do to help you, love?"

"There's a connection between these images," she said, finishing the last, and grabbing a handful. "Help me find it?"

He nodded, and the two began lying them out on the office floor, dinner forgotten.

* * *

It was a long process. Laying them out. Grasping at straws. Rearranging them. Making notes on possibilities. Rearranging them. Deciding they were wrong. Starting over. Making new notes. Rearranging them. Taking one step forward two steps back. Rearranging them.

Fi sighed, realizing they were on the wrong track, again.

"We're done."

"What?" she demanded.

"We're done for tonight."

"But-"

"Love, we're going in circles, and we're tired. You need to sleep, clear your head a bit."

"But-"

"No," he said, steering her from the room. "We'll come back to it tomorrow."


	19. Chapter 19

**I'm sorry. I know it's been a while, unfortunately life sort of got in the way, hope ya'll are still interested and no matter how long it takes me I do promise this story will be finished, I refuse to start and then drop a story, I don't think it's fair to the reader. Not that it's fair to ya'll to have to wait so long for updates but I'm only a human, a lazy one at that, So agian, I'm sorry =( Good news I have more written, I just need to edit it, I'm hoping to update again today. **

**Hope you'all enjoy. Hope you all R&R.**

**No, I don't own it, surprise surprise.**

* * *

"It didn't hurt!" Fi exclaimed, rushing into the living room, a smile stretching her face..

"What, love?" he asked, his focus on the soccer game.

"It. Didn't. Hurt."

"What didn't hurt?" he asked distractedly, turning to look at her Fi, who was still in a long silk robe.

"My hair," she smiled, perching on the back of the couch. "_I_ brushed it and it didn't hurt, at all _and _that's without painkillers."

Dorian smiled deviously and pulled her down onto the couch. She let out a squeal of surprise, as she landed sprawled on the couch, half in his lap.

"Does this mean I no longer have to play hairdresser, love?" he asked, sounding hopeful.

"But you're so good at it," she pouted playfully, determinedly ignoring the fact that she was in a rather compromised position.

"I'm good at other things, too," he smirked, lightly trailing his fingertips over her side."

"Ah, no," she yelped, smacking his hand away, trying not to laugh.

"Oh, but, love, it's so much fun," he smiled, once again trailing his fingers along her ticklish side.

"Dorie," she laughed, trying to twist away, unable to make her tone serious,"I don't think I'm recovered enough for this."

"Nonsense," he told her, holding her in place. "Besides, what better way to find out?"

"You win," she cried out.

"And am enjoying my spoils," he informed her pleasantly as he switched to her other side, a fresh round of shrieking escaping her.

"Now, if I remember correctly," he said, his hand moving toward her lower stomach, "your most ticklish-"

"Don't you dare!" she yelled, squirming in earnest.

Unexpectedly, his hand froze and his head snapped up, his body tensing.

"Dorian?" she asked, concerned.

"Hush! Come on… That's it… Yes, yes… Come on!"

Fi followed his gaze to the television and sighed, relaxing again; unable to make herself get up and finish getting ready- Dorian had a _very _comfortable lap.

"That's it… Yes!" he yelled, standing up with the goal kick, his arms shooting into the air. "Did you see that!"

Fi cleared her throat from where she was laying half on the ground, half on the couch.

"Oh, sorry, love," he said sheepishly, sliding his hands under her arms and hauling her back onto the couch, sitting down himself. "But did you see that goal?"

Without waiting for an answer he turned back to the television, once again absorbed in the game.

"I'm going to go finish getting ready and leave you to your sports," she said with a patient smile, standing up and inadvertently blocking his view

"Alright, love," he said, absentmindedly patting her backside, trying to hurry her out of his line of sight- she obligingly stepped to the side before she realized what he had done. "Are we still going out with your family tonight?"

"Y-yeah, there, uh, picking us up in an hour," she said, staring at him.

"Good, good," he said, distractedly, his focus entirely on the game.

Fi turned and made her way to the bedroom, trying to make sense of what he had just done. Sure, Dorian hit on her a lot, and he had no problems being physical when he was directly flirting with her, like when he was tickling her. She knew it had been very conscious. But patting her like that had just been so casual, so… thoughtless, she wasn't even sure he realized he had done it. It had been an old habit of his, from when they had still been together; his way of brushing her off when his focus was elsewhere and he needed her out of his way. She tried to convince herself that it didn't mean anything but the little voice in the back of her head wouldn't let her; falling into old, intimate, habits could not be good.

* * *

"I could have been changing," Fi pointed out distractedly as the door to her room opened and Dorian stepped in.

"Wouldn't that have been nice," he commented, flipping up his collar and laying his tie in place.

"You're just a riot," she told him dryly, slipping into her black stilettos.

"No, I'm just honest," he replied, looking up from his tie, his eyes widening, the material slipping from his hold.

"What is it?" she asked, sounding self conscious, as she turned back to look at herself in the mirror. "What? Does the dress not look right?"

It was a dress she had bought a while ago but had yet to wear, so she thought she'd try it for tonight. It was a deep, jewel, blue and strapless, tight and formfitting, stopping just below her knees. The neckline was scooped slightly to show off a little more cleavage and was trimmed with a black velour material. The velour was continued on in a delicate floral pattern that started on the right side, where the neckline trim ended. It came down in a thin line of slight flowers that crossed under her bust line, becoming more expansive and widening out halfway across, the pattern heading down, angled across her stomach. When the pattern reached her left hip, it thinned out and wrapped around her lower back, once again switching to a downward angle about halfway across, finally lining up with the mid thigh slit and following it straight down. She resisted the urge to chew on her bottom lip, maybe she should wear something else?

"Not look right?" he asked incredulous. "Fi, you look… breathtaking."

Fi blushed, and shrugged slightly before heading towards him, "I won't change than. Here, let me help you with that."

She picked up the forgotten ends of the tie, her hands going to autopilot as she tied it allowing her to return to her earlier thoughts before he had interrupted.

"Thanks, love," he said, as she tightened it.

"Mmm-hmm," she murmured, flipping his collar down.

"Hey," he said gently gripping her chin and tilting her head up. "Where'd you go?"

"Oh, sorry," she smiled, pulling away, and grabbing her clutch.

"You've been doing that a lot lately, love."

"Have I?" she said, heading towards the kitchen, knowing now was not a good time to get into this conversation.

"Fi," he said following after her, realizing what was on her mind, "obsessing isn't going to help us figure it out any sooner."

"Really," she snapped, lack of sleep and frustration making her cranky, "you seem to have a different opinion when we're working on _your_ project."

"Oh, so now it's my project? I thought it was ours. When did that change?" he demanded, his own temper stretched with tiredness and worry over her.

"When you couldn't be bothered to return the favor with my Vision," she yelled, smashing her purse down on the kitchen table.

"I _am_ helping you Fi, it's not my fault we're not progressing as fast as you'd like," he yelled back.

"We would be if _you_ didn't keep pulling me away from it!"

"Excuse me for not wanting to see you work yourself into an early grave. Besides, I can see how much it bothers you when we're working on it."

"I know my limits," she snarled.

"No you don't Fiona! You act like you're invincible and you're not! We both know that you've pushed yourself too far before," he finished quietly.

"Limits are not a luxury I can afford-"

"Don't you dare try to play that card, I am sick and-"

"And that is _exactly_ our problem, you never could accept my priorities, my responsibilities! There are people who depend on me; I won't walk away from that, so stop asking me to!"

Molly and the group had reached the entryway to Fi's apartment in time to hear Dorian's booming voice.

"You're no good to those people dead, Fiona, or have you forgotten what happened the last time you ran off half-cocked?"

"Don't you _dare_ throw that in face!" screeched Fi, her tone a mix of anger and hurt.

"I'll do what I have to if it keeps you alive, woman!" his roared back, his patience clearly waning.

"If only you'd had the same consideration for Arrie!" she snapped cruelly.

"I cared for Arrie and you know it, Fiona," he said, his voice dangerously low.

"Than why is she dead?" Fi demanded.

The group heard a rather loud thud, and looked at each other nervously.

"Dorian!" she exclaimed as he yanked his fist out of the nice size hole he had just put in the kitchen wall.

"Go on, then," he said, not turning around to face her.

"Go on?"

"Get it out of your system. We both know there are things you've wanted to say to me, scream at me, for quite a while now, go on."

"Dorian," she started, her anger fading. "I-"

The doorbell rang. The two froze.

"Hide the hole, I'll go get the door," he told her. Then added quietly, "I would have died for her Fi, there just wasn't time."

Fiona stood in silence for a few moments, the sound of a door opening and voices finally jarring her back to her senses. She walked over to the hole.

* * *

Fi smiled tightly as Dorian pulled her chair back so she could stand. He nodded, his eyes distant and cold. While the two had been perfectly amiable and pleasant towards the group, only an idiot could miss the tension between the two of them. Fi wondered how much her family had overheard.

"Dorian," she said, laying a hand on his arm. "I'm going to go the restroom before we leave."

He nodded, "We'll meet the rest of you at the car."

Fi reached the bathroom and opened the door, smiling as she saw it was a single bathroom. She grabbed his arm and yanked him in after her.

"Um… Fiona?"

"I'm sorry, Dorian," she said regret clear in her voice. "The things I said, I should never have… I _know _that you cared for Arrie, and I know you want to help me figure out my Vision… It's just, I also _know _that there are things you've kept from me, things you still aren't telling me, and it just… it just doesn't excuse any of it. How acted earlier, the things I said, were wrong and I can't tell you how very sorry I am for it. If I could take it back…"

He nodded, "You did have your points. I have been holding you back. I don't like seeing how bad that Vision bothers you but that's not my place anymore and I won't do it again. I thought we might work on it tomorrow, love?"

She nodded, wishing it _was_ still his place and followed him out to the cars, his hand finding hers as they went.

* * *

"You and Dorian okay now?" asked Carey, as they made their way to the bar of the club the group had gone to after dinner- celebrating the fact that Molly's new release was still in the top ten.

"So, you all overheard?" she asked sheepishly.

"I think the whole building overheard. What'd he break?"

"The wall. That picture in the kitchen used to be centered over the table. But yeah, we made up."

"Good, the strain coming off of you two at dinner was horrible."

"Sorry."

"It's okay, what matters is you two fixed it. I'm just glad he doesn't let his anger get in the way of keeping you safe… I'm actually surprised he let you come over to the bar without him."

"Vodka and tonic," she told the bartender before turning back to Carey. "I promise you his eyes haven't left me since I got up _and_ he's evaluating every person who gets close to me."

"In this crowd?" Carey asked in disbelief as they turned from the bar.

"He's the best for a reason."

"It's impressive, if slightly creepy," commented Carey.

Fi laughed. She didn't, however, notice the rather large man in her way.

"Oh, I'm sorry," exclaimed Fi, as she collided with him. She pulled back, "I didn't see you there."

"I noticed," he snapped, clearly unhappy. "I almost spilled my drink."

"Well… I, uh, guess it's a good thing you didn't," she shrugged.

"That's all you have to say?" he demanded, irrationally angry- Carey stepped closer to Fi.

"Well, I did already apologize," she pointed out, confused by his anger.

That was clearly not the answer he wanted. He reached for her. Carey grabbed the man's outstretched arm and Fi stepped back, right as Dorian slid in front of her. One hand snaked around behind himself, pressing Fi against his back, while the other shot forward, coming in contact with the man and keeping him back. Fi tried to wiggle out of Dorian's hold, but the man wouldn't budge. She gave up, no matter that she could have handled it on her own, Dorian would have stepped in even if the man had done nothing more than frown at her. Fi tried to convince herself that it was because it was his job and not because he cared for her. There was absolutely nothing romantic about it, or so she told herself several times.

"I strongly suggest you walk away," warned Dorian, his tone threatening.

"Excuse me?" he demanded, a slight slur tingeing his words. "I'm not going anywhere. That girl-"

"Already apologized. Now walk away."

"No, I-"

"Is there a problem here?"

Dorian glanced at the bouncer from the corner of his eye, "Only that this man's had a little too much to drink and decided it would be fun to harass the female patrons."

"I see, let's go," said the bouncer taking a firm hold of the slightly drunk man.

Once the man and bouncer were out of sight, Dorian turned around, cupping her face with one hand, "Are you alright, love?"

Fi sighed, "Of course I'm alright. The man didn't even touch me."

"He tried," scowled Carey.

"Have the two of you ever heard of the word 'overreact'?" she asked sarcastically.

Dorian laughed as Carey shook his head.

"Can you take this back to the table?" asked Dorian handing Fi's drink to Carey.

"Sure," he said, taking it.

"Where are we going?" asked Fi, as Dorian gripped her hand, pulling her along.

"To dance, love."

Fi let him pull her along, trying to imagine it was like old times. Dorian pulled her against him, moving them both in time with the music, his hands traveling flirtatiously. Both were unaware of Fi's family watching them.

"Annie?" said Molly, aware that the girls were closer than either of them let on. "Do you know what happened between them?"

"Fi doesn't really talk about it," she dodged- she knew exactly what happened.

"We've got to find out," insisted Irene. " It's obvious Fiona's hiding a lot of pain from something that happened while she was living in England and it's clear that something big happened between them, yet he makes her so happy. Not that she'll ever admit that.

Despite Fi's best efforts it was clear Fiona was keeping a lot of secrets from them.

"Yeah," said Jack, "but you know Fi, if she doesn't want us to know we're not going to find out, and I think she's made it pretty clear she has no desire to discuss the last few years."

"Yeah, but Fi _needs_ to talk about it _and _she _needs _Dorian," argued Gabe, "only she's too stubborn to admit it or do anything about it."

Molly, Irene, and Annie nodded their agreement.

"Oh, no," said Ned, "You are not going to start playing match maker. Fi's a big girl and if she wants to fix things with Dorian that'll be her decision."

"As her family, it's our responsibility to help her," maintained Irene.

Jack and Carey sighed in defeat, when the women in their family got something into their head, there was no stopping them.

"Will, man, help me out here," pleaded Ned, Fiona did not need them harassing her, she had enough on her plate.

"Look," said Will, clearly uncertain, "Ned's right, so what I'm about to tell you, you didn't find out from me because she'd kill me. I had hoped she would tell in her own time," which was a lie, he and Fiona had both hoped they'd never find out, "and I only know this because it was included in her transfer papers, and it was only there because the company required a psych evaluation…"

The group frowned, not liking the sound of what he was going to tell them.

"Her best friend back in England, Arrie, worked in the same department. Actually, they headed a lot of the same projects together, and Dorian, in addition to being Fi's fiancé, also headed her security. Like I mentioned before, this isn't her first problem with threats against her life… Anyway, there was a breach of security, a bad breach and she almost died. Dorian was able to save Fi but Arrie was killed."

"Oh my God," exclaimed Molly and Irene in unison.

"There's more," he said gravely, hoping they wouldn't ask to many questions as he could only edit so much, "Dorian was implicated in the murder. He's since been cleared," lied Will- Dorian hadn't been cleared, there just wasn't enough to convict him, yet. "But, the accusation left it's mark and, well, between loosing her best friend, the trials, the company pressure, it put a lot of strain on their relationship and eventually broke it."

"When did all this happen?" asked Molly, tears in her voice.

"Six months before her transfer here."

"How could she not say anything?" asked Clue, sounding hurt.

"Knowing Fi, she was probably trying to protect us," said Carey sadly. "And, by the time things settled down, it was probably just to painful for her to dredge up."

"Fi's always been good at burying her feelings, easier than confronting them," summed up Jack, horrified at what his sister had been through.

"Do we talk to her about it?" asked Molly.

"No," said the guys in unison.

The group fell into silence for a few minutes, and before anyone could comment Fi and Dorian joined them, a little out of breath.

"What's up with everyone?" asked Fi, grabbing her drink, "you all look like someone died."

* * *

"Love," said Dorian, opening the car door. "We're home."

"No," she whined, not opening her eyes. "I'm comfortable."

Dorian chuckled and instead of arguing, picked her up.

"Hey," she complained, wrapping her arms around his neck, "I can walk."

"Should I put you down then?" he smirked.

"No," she told him, snuggling into him.

Dorian laughed and kicked the door shut. He tried to ignore his worry for the girl in his arms as he carried her up to the apartment. The evening hadn't been a strenuous or long one. She shouldn't be so tired but then she was still pushing herself nonstop. He'd lost track of the number of times he had come out in the middle of the night to find her working on her Vision or the research they had started or the Native American project. She needed to let herself rest but he knew from experience how near impossible that feat was.

"I forgot how comfortable you are," she mumbled half asleep as Dorian used magic to unlock and open the door.

Dorian suppressed a groan and took her into the bedroom. Heaven help him if he didn't manage to changed her mind because he knew there could never be anyone else for him and the limbo they were currently in was driving him crazy. He settled her gently on the bed, slipped her shoes off, and pulled a blanket over her.

"Sleep well, sweetheart," he whispered, kissing the top of her head.


	20. Chapter 20

**Yay, another chapter =) More good news, I have another chapter I plan to post today. Hope you enjoy. Hope you R&R. No I don't own. **

* * *

"Coffee?" asked Dorian from the office door.

"Mm-hm," she mumbled hunched over pictures on her desk. "Please."

"What time did you get up, love?" he asked, carefully making his way around the stacks of paperwork that filled the room.

"Um… I woke up around three and couldn't get back to sleep. Figured I might as well be productive," she told him, lowering her head a bit more and squinting.

"Fiona, love, you really need to invest in some glasses."

"No I don't," she told him, sitting up and rubbing at her headache.

"Yes, you do," he smirked, handing her the coffee. "What are you working on?"

"Translating what I found at that Native American sight," she sighed, taking a grateful sip of caffeine. "I'm an expert on languages, and the biggest finding the Company's had in years and it _has_ to be in one of the handful of languages I don't know."

"Life's unfair like that."

"I've noticed," she told him dryly. "I swear grass grows faster and watching paint dry would be more fun."

"Have you made any progress?" he asked, starting to rub her neck.

"Mmmm, that feels amazing," she sighed, leaning into his massage. "About the only progress I've made is the phrase 'the untouched one', which gets repeated a lot. I've got _most_ of the articles translated and… I'm mentioned a couple times… but outside of that it's slow going. The problem is it isn't really a known Native American Language. Actually, it seems to be a compilation of several different ones, so I have no reference points. There's no logic to why whoever carved and painted this chose certain words from one language and certain words from another, or why he followed the rules of one language in one area and then suddenly switched to the rules of another. God, it's giving me a migraine."

"I'm sorry, baby," he murmured working his hands down her back- she groaned again.

"God, you have no idea how good this feels," she told him taking another sip as her eyes fluttered shut- she let out a moan as he hit a particularly bad knot.

"Considering you sound like we're doing something a lot more intimate than a back rub, love, I'd say I have a pretty good idea," he laughed.

"Shut up," she told him, blushing. "I also did some work on the pictures."

"Oh?" he said, glancing over at the ghastly drawings that still littered her office floor- a good portion of them were grouped together forming in image that seemed to make some sense, a fresh set of notes on the dry erase board.

"Love, why don't you enjoy your coffee, go freshen up"-she was still in her pajamas- "and I'll do some more work on it."

"I don't want you to stop," she whined.

"I'll give you a proper one later, promise," he chuckled.

"Alright then," she sighed, standing, several joints popping. "God, I sound like an old woman."

"You're walking like one too," he teased as he watched her head out the door, realizing that the little weight he had gotten her to gain after her attack she had lost agian.

She paused at the door, "Dorie?"

"Yes, love?"

"Thank you."

* * *

"Better?" asked Dorian, re-hooking Fi's bra strap and climbing off her.

"You have no idea," she sighed, not moving.

"Get you clothes back on," he told her with a smile. "I'm going to go find a movie. You want popcorn, love?"

"Yes please. Hot chocolate too?"

"Coming up. But you have to get moving," he told her, playfully poking her in the side.

"Eventually," she sighed, not budging an inch.

"Don't fall asleep, love," he chuckled, swatting her with her shirt before making his way to the kitchen.

"Please tell me we're watching something funny and mindless?" she asked, emerging from the room a few minutes later.

"Define funny and mindless," he replied ambiguously.

"Dorie," she whined, taking the hot chocolate as he poured the popcorn into a bowl.

"It's a good movie, love, you'll like it," he told her.

"Yeah, but I'm going to have to actually pay attention and focus to follow it and I'm too tired for that," she complained.

He chuckled, placed a hand on her hip and turned her in the direction of the living room, "What's the point of watching a movie on if you're not going to pay attention to it?"

"Mindless entertainment and relaxation," she replied automatically as he steered her towards the couch.

"You'll like it, love," he assured as he put in the DVD, "I promise."

"And if I don't?" she asked, setting their mugs down next to the popcorn bowl.

"Hush. It's starting," he said, plopping down next to her.

"Dorian," she pressed.

"Ssshhh, love. We can't pay attention to the movie if you talk," he smirked.

"Dorian, don't dodge my question," she whined crossing her arms.

He turned, smiled at her, snaked his arm around her shoulder, and clamped a hand over her mouth, pulling her against him, "Now see, was that so difficult?"

"Mmmm-hhmmm-mmm-hmmhm," she mumbled against his hand.

Dorian didn't budge. She balled up her fist and socked him in the gut- it had no effect other than to hurt her hand. He grabbed said hand and intertwined their fingers.

"That reminds me love, tomorrow I want to start working on your self-defense."

"Mmmhmmh-hhhmmmmhmm."

"Will you be quiet if I let go?"

She nodded.

"Alright," he sighed as if it was a great hardship.

Dorian dropped his hand but left his arm around her.

"Thank you," she sniffed.

He simply laughed and tightened his arm, tucking her more firmly against him.

"You're insufferable," she sighed, halfheartedly. "Warning though, I will probably fall asleep."

"Duly noted."

"Alright then," she said, cuddling into him.

He felt himself relax, he was making progress.

* * *

"Love, it's time to wake up, the movie's over," he said, trailing his fingertips along her arm.

"Hm-mm? What? I'm awake. What'd I miss?"

"You missed about an hour and twenty minutes of an hour and half movie," he chuckled.

"Sorry," she blushed.

"Could've been worse, if you stayed awake you could have continued complaining."

She rolled her eyes, as the last thing she remembered was him covering her mouth again.

"Silver lining, huh?" Fi asked, sitting up and stretching.

"Exactly," he agreed, poking her stomach where her shirt had pulled up.

"Hey," she batted his hand away. "I did warn you."

"That you did," he acquiesced.

"Once that guy started going on and on about all the little details that built his case, I…"

"Fiona? What is it, love?"

"It's all the little details," she said unhelpfully, throwing herself over the back of the couch and racing towards the office.

"Fi?" he called, racing after her. "Fi, what's going through that head of yours?"

"We've spent too much time looking at the big picture," she mumbled, grabbing a pencil and numbering the back of her drawings before pulling them apart.

"What are you doing?"

"Learning from you, thanks for picking out that movie," she told him, picking up one of her drawings to study it.

"Fiona," he grunted in frustration.

"This whole time we've been focusing on putting the pieces together, which isn't bad, I don't think. We need the pieces to fit because they _do_ from a bigger image but we never stopped to make sure we understood each individual piece."

"I thought it was just one big piece, there weren't any individual ones," he said confused.

"So did I, because I never really though about it. I just drew them and assumed they had to be put together. I didn't draw those pictures separate because I didn't have large enough paper but because they _are_ separate, I just never realized."

Dorian picked up a drawing, "So, if we analyze each one individually, we may be able to figure out what connects them all."

"Exactly. Dorie?" she said looking up at him, a frown marring her features.

"What is it, love?"

"I'm sorry I didn't realize this sooner… I should have realized it when I was drawing them. I've wasted so much of our time."

"Love, we both should have realized this a while ago. You have nothing to apologize for," he told her, returning to his picture. "Get to work."

"Aye-aye, captain," she said, leaning back against the bookshelf.

* * *

Fi glanced at the clock, and yawned. It was four a.m. and they were exhausted but they didn't have the time to waste on sleep.

"I'm going to go put on more coffee," she said, yawning again.

"Alright, love," he said, raking fingers through his hair.

Fi was half way down the hall when he called her back.

"What is it?" she asked leaning against the door frame, she really wanted more coffee.

"Every picture has a pendant."

"What?"

"Look," he said, pointing to a tattoo on one of the body pieces. "And here she has it clutched in her hand. In this one, it's in the rubble. And look here…"

Fi felt the blood drain from her face as Dorian pointed out each pendant. She recognized it.

"Fi? Where are you going?" he called after her. "Fi!"


	21. Chapter 21

**Last Chapter for the day, hope you enjoy. Please R&R. Don't own it, or it'd still be on T.V.**

* * *

She didn't stop to explain, but continued to race towards her room. Fi started pulling apart her very large jewelry box, not even noticing when Dorian came in.

She let out a grunt of frustration as she searched through the last draw and didn't find it.

"Love, what is it?"

"I'll explain in a minute," she told him distractedly, running a hand through her hair. "Where did I put them?"

Fi had decided, when she moved into the new apartment, not to store them with the rest of her jewelry like she usually did. She'd wanted to put them someplace safer. She could remember when she'd figured out where, she had thought it was perfect, only now she couldn't remember where that was. She was too tired to focus. They were magical and they were important and they were powerful and they were sentimental, where would she have put them? Fi squeezed her eyes shut, willing her over tired mind to remember.

Closet!

She had put them somewhere in the closet… but where in the closet. She kept the large walk in organized, it shouldn't be difficult. She pictured it in her mind- the different items, the labeled bins and boxes… which one?

Arrie!

Fi scrambled to her feet and into her closet, grateful that she kept it so neat. She moved boxes and bins out of her way, finally pulling, from the far back corner, a box labeled Arrie. Carefully, she took off the lid and tried to ignore the ache that flared up as she took in her twin's most precious belongings. She gripped the side of the box with shaking hands as she sucked in a sharp breath. She had managed to pack Arrie's stuff, albeit tears and some hyperventilating, just a few days after the funeral, she could do this. Fi felt a pair of hands rest on her shoulders and looked up to see Dorian's concerned face.

"Love?"

"I'm okay. I'll be fine. I'm used to it by now," she rambled, starting to gently sort through the box.

"Used to it?"

"When things remind me of… of her, it's still really hard… It kind of feels like getting punched in the stomach… Unfortunately, the world doesn't stop spinning just because your world shatters," she said sadly pulling out a brown leather pouch. "You just have to deal and keep going; I'm use to things like this bothering me."

She felt Dorian kiss the top of her head and looked up in pleasant surprise.

"Have I ever told you how incredibly strong you are, my love?"

Fi squeezed one of the hands still resting on her shoulder, and slid the lid back on, "That's nice to hear… Most days I feel the exact opposite," she sighed.

"I know," he smiled, pulling her to her feet. "But trust me, love, you are many things- weak has never been one of them."

"I'll have to remember that, remind myself on the hard days," she smiled, heading back to the office.

Dorian followed her, making a mental note to encourage her more often. She was strong, so strong, it was easy to forget that the face she showed to the world contrasted greatly with what she felt. Fi had the irritating ability to be the picture of calm while, in fact, she was falling apart inside.

Fi picked up the drawing with the clearest representation of the amulet and set it on the desk. Then, shaking slightly, untied the pouch and gently pulled out two amulets identical to the ones in the drawings. She handed one to Dorian.

"Love?" he said nervously as he took in the piece of jewelry, comparing it to the image before him.

"You're… You're not the only one with secrets," she told him, trying to keep her voice steady. "There are things about my magic, my coven, that I've never told you, Dorie."

The apology was clear in her tone.

"I know," he told her, sitting in the desk chair.

"What?"

"Fi, magic is private, personal, and much of it's power comes from it's secrecy. Just as there are things I have not told you, I knew there were things you didn't tell me," he explained, seemingly unperturbed.

"I didn't want to keep it from you," she said, still staring at her amulet.

"Nor did I," he said simply. "We did what we had to."

"Dorie, what I'm going to tell you… you can't tell anyone else," she told him, biting her lip.

Dorian blinked, trying to hide his surprise- she was going to trust him with something now that she hadn't when they were still engaged- and said, "You have my word, Fiona."

"Coven's each have their own individual magical marker or representation of their coven, their sisterhood, their magic- the more powerful the coven, the more unique the marker. And different Coven's use them in different ways- some have their markers put into rings, some put them into daggers, I knew one that had theirs put into pictures. _My_ coven had ours turned into amulets. Our marker is powerful but the amulet setting only adds to that and it gives us added protection…My sisters and I are marked by the blood-fire stone," she said, letting the information settle in.

"The blood-fire stone is supposed to be a legend," he said, slowly trying to work through what she'd just confessed.

"In our world, we both know that what is supposed to be and what is are two very different things," she said sadly.

Dorian held up the extra amulet, "This is a _blood-fire_ amulet?"

Fi nodded, "It was Arrie's."

Dorian set the amulet down on the pouch, and turned to look at Fi. She was lost in thought, and whatever the thoughts were he didn't like them. Her face was marred with a frown, and her thumb kept running over the stone in her hand, ever quickening. There wasn't much color left in her face either.

"Fi?"

She didn't respond, her frown just deepened, her forehead creasing. He also thought she was shaking slightly.

"Love, what's wrong?" he asked gently.

She didn't answer. She did start to worry her bottom lip, an old nervous habit of hers. Was her breathing more erratic?

"Fiona, tell me what's going on," he ordered- she was frightening him; it took a lot for Fi to loose it.

The amulet slipped from her hands, clattering on top of the drawing. She wrapped her arms around body in self comfort. Her breathing was definitely too fast and shallow to be healthy. A tear slipped down her cheek.

"Oh God," she gasped, her shaking becoming severe.

"Hey, hey, hey," said Dorian gently, gripping her waist and pulling her onto his lap. He wrapped his arms around her, tucking her against him, "None of that, sweetheart. Talk to me."

"Oh God," she gasped again, her hands gripping his shirt. "I can't loose anyone else."

"Who said anything about loosing anyone, love? You're not making sense," he pleaded, rubbing her back.

"I'm going to loose them, my sisters," she gasped. "It's what it means. My coven is going to be murdered just like Arrie."

"No," he said firmly, tightening his hold on her. "You are not going to loose your coven, Fiona. We have an idea of what's coming now; it's why you had that Vision. We can work to stop it."

"But-"

"No buts. Hush now," he murmured, kissing the top of her head. "It's going to be okay, honey. _You're_ going to be okay."

Fi nodded into his chest, letting the calmness of his voice and words wash into her, allowing her nerves to settle. Slowly, she felt the shaking slow and the pressure in her chest start to lift. It felt like she could breathe again.

"Are you using magic on me?" she asked.

"Maybe a little, love," he chuckled. "Is it working?"

"Yes, thank you," she told him, pushing herself up.

To his surprise though, she didn't get off his lap. She picked the amulet back up and settled herself more comfortably before leaning back down into his chest. Dorian tried to suppress his smile, as he tightened his hold on her.

"Shut up, you," she told him.

"I didn't say anything," he insisted innocently.

"No, but you thought it," she maintained. "It's not my fault you're so comfy."

He chuckled.

"I need to warn them," she said gravely, turning the amulet over in her hand.

"Of what?"

"Of the danger their in," she shrugged.

"That's it?"

"We don't know much more beyond that, do we? I mean, what am I supposed to say, Dorie? Hey, some psychopathic, crazed, murder is after our coven and he might just chop you up into little pieces?"

"Putting it that way might not be the best idea," he said seriously, knowing that she was only being semi facetious.

"I'll just tell them I know something bad is coming, something life threatening, and they need to be careful, and that I'll let them know when I know more. They'll heed me," she sighed, feeling like she was failing her sisters- she just couldn't lose anyone else.

"Hey, hey, easy, love. I can feel you tensing up. It's going to be okay," he soothed, starting to rub her back again. "You should probably also tell them to stay in groups when they can."

"Yeah, that'd be good, thank you… I just don't know if I should have them wear their amulet," she said, uncertainly, though markedly calmer.

"What do you mean, love?"

"The amulet provides great protection, it could, it _should_, help to keep them safe, but if it's in every image… what if will cause more harm then good, Dorie?"

"What are your instincts telling you, sweetheart?"

"I don't know," she confessed, sounding frustrated.

"That, my dear, is because it is late and you are exhausted. You've pushed yourself enough for one night, bed time," he told her, leaving no room for argument. "We can tackle this more tomorrow, love."

Fi didn't particularly want to be alone right now but knew she didn't have a reason to postpone going to bed. Not that she'd let that get in her way. She'd just have to play dirty.

She groaned, and wiggled into him even more, "You're probably right… Why do you have to be so comfortable?"

"Just lucky that way," he laughed to cover his own groan- why did holding her have to feel so good? Pulling her back against him when she tried to get up, he offered, "Just stay put, and close your eyes honey, I'll move you when you're asleep."

"You're a good man," she told him tiredly, as she snuggled into him.

"I'm going to remind you of that tomorrow," he chuckled, trailing his fingers over her back, trying to relax her.

"I'll deny it," she said, a smile in her voice.

She could feel the vibrations of his chuckle.

"Ssshhh, this isn't sleeping," he chastised.

"I'm not good at sleeping," she reminded him.

"That's fixable," he told her starting to hum.

"That's cheating," she told him, he continued to hum. "And that was your cue to start singing it."

"Yes, ma'am," he smiled, pressing a kiss to the top of her head.

He started singing it.

* * *

Fi went flying back into the wall, crashing to the floor, unaware that her family had just walked in.

"Fi!" exclaimed several concerned voices.

"She's fine," came Dorian's steady voice. "Get up, Fiona."

"Dorian, she could be hurt, man," pressed Clue.

"She's not. Get up, Fiona."

"I'm working on it," she growled. "Did you have to throw me that hard?"

"Yes, and you're not working fast enough," he barked. "In the time it's taking you to stand, someone could kill you. Now. Get. Up!"

Grunting, fi flipped up to her feet, and fought the urge to rub her now sore back. She had forgotten how grueling a trainer Dorian was.

"You threw my daughter into a wall?" said Molly, angry.

"Yes," he answered unapologetically. "What did you do wrong Fiona?"

"Well," she sighed, easing her posture.

"Don't relax!" he ordered. "When you're in a fight, you do not relax, you do not let your guard down."

"Right, sorry," she said, forcing herself to tense back up and resume her former stance. "Well, outside of loosing and getting catapulted into a very hard wall?"

"Yes, aside from that," he said, a slight turn to the corner of his mouth.

"I went with force instead of speed, and I struck at muscle instead of joints," she sighed, hating to admit her screw ups.

"Your small Fi, you will never be able to take someone with sheer force, it's why speed is your greatest asset, we'll work on that. Furthermore, because you're small, you have to use what force you have strategically, that's why you go for joints and other weak points, we'll work on that too."

"I know."

"For someone who knows, you seemed to have a hard time remembering," he pointed out.

"I know," she sighed, raking a hand through her hair- a good portion of which had fallen out of her pony tail.

"It'll come back, it's instinctual, you're just out of practice but we'll fix that," he told her. "We're going for a run tonight."

"Sir, yes, sir," she mock saluted.

"And don't forget it," he laughed. "I'm going to take a shower."

Fi watched Dorian slip out, ignoring the glares from her family, and turned to the others.

"You said earlier, to just come in so…" Carey trailed off.

"Carey!" exclaimed Gabe and Annie in unison, whacking his arm.

"Hey, ow."

"What he means is are you okay?" said Molly clearly concerned.

"Yeah Fi, he could have seriously hurt you," said Ned, sounding uncharacteristically angry.

"Guys, don't worry so much, Dorian knows what he's doing. He's doing this to _keep_ me from getting hurt," she defended, not liking how upset her family was with her- with Dorian. "Besides if a few bruises now keeps me from getting killed later, I think that's a fair price."

"Fi, could you please not say that so casually?" asked Irene, her voice tight.

"It's the truth Irene, would you rather I sugar coat it?" replied Fi gravely.

"We'd rather you had told us about the threats against you a long time ago," answered Molly.

"What good would it have done, mom? None of you could have done anything for me. Letting you all know would have just caused everyone to worry, you didn't need that, I didn't need that," she explained, really not wanting to have this conversation.

"Fi, we're your family," pointed out Jack, sounding hurt.

"And the only way I could protect you was to not tell you," she insisted, pinching the bridge of her nose. "Look, guys, what's done is done, it was never my intention to hurt you. Now, I really need to go shower too, the stuff for the wedding favors are on the dining room table. Help yourself to anything you want."

"That went well," said Carey sarcastically, once she was out of earshot.

"I'm thinking we should wait to bring up Arrie," commented Jack.

"No kidding," agreed Molly.


	22. Chapter 22

**Zach: I'm really glad your enjoying, thanks for the review and I've got two more chapters I'm hoping to get posted today =)**

**Mark: I'm glad you're liking it too. That was a really cool review. Hope you continue to enjoy it. =)**

**Disclaimer:... Don't own. **

**Read and Review and Enjoy =D**

Fi paid for the last minutes alterations, thanked the attendant, and headed out with her dress. She had managed to put on a little weight- since she had started training with Dorian he had been adamant about how much she ate- and the dress had become a little tight. Fortunately, the dress had previously been taking in so it was easy enough to let it out, which was good considering the wedding was the next day. She smiled at Dorian's impatient expression as she followed him to the car to drop off her dress.

"You could have gone with guys, one afternoon on my own wouldn't kill me," she pointed out- they were gathering bachelor party supplies, for the poker night they were having at her place.

Jack hadn't wanted anything major, and Clue- the best man- had settled on the idea of an at home poker night a while ago. They were having it at her place because the guys wanted Dorian to be there. She felt bad for inconveniencing them but Clue had insisted it didn't matter where they did it and her place was awesome so no one would complain. Even still, as an apology, she had purchased a large poker table, which they had set up in the middle of the living room that morning- they needed to have access to sports while they were playing- and told Clue to put the alcohol on her card, which he readily agreed to. The girls had had their bachelorette party the day before, opting for a spa day. Dorian hadn't liked it much but after doing a thorough background check of the place, informing her he'd be spending the day in the car in the parking lot, that he expected a call every hour, and that if anything felt even the slightest bit off she had better call him, he had finally agreed she could go. Mostly though, she thought he agreed because he knew she would have found a way to go regardless.

"Actually, love, until we find out who put a hit on you, one afternoon alone could kill you," he replied, disapprovingly.

Fi sighed, knowing that arguing would get her no where. She paused and looked at her hair in the mirror, twirling a few strands around her finger, frowning.

"Do you not like it?" he asked, coming up behind her, resting his hands on her waist.

"I don't know yet. I sent Gabe a picture, she likes it and that's what matters," she sighed, dropping her hand. "We should go find the guys."

Fi had wanded to do something different with her hair for a while, so she had talked it over with Gabe, even offering to return to her natural brown for the wedding. To her relief, her sister-in-law was horrified by the idea. She had asked Fi to be in her wedding, Gabe insisted, because she liked Fi, her spunkiness especially. She'd also insisted that if Fi offered to remove her piercings for the wedding one more time she'd hit her. She wanted Fi, crazy hair, piercings, and all. Fi really liked Gabe and was happy Jack had her in his life. The two had spent a while discussing options, Gabe had suggested she die her hair white and add dark blue highlights. Fi had fallen in love with the idea and gotten it done this morning. She liked it, she just didn't know if she liked it more than her all blue hair.

"There you guys are," called Clue. "Man, Fi, love there hair."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah, it's like, wicked cool," he assured her.

"It was Gabe's idea," she smiled.

"Really? That's hard to believe," commented Ned.

"I know right," she laughed.

"So, you done with your errands Fi?" asked Carey.

"Yeah, you guys?"

"We've got to go to the liquor store still," said Ned, "but we're going to the one a few blocks from here. They've got a better selection, and they'll deliver it, since the car's already pretty full."

"Sounds good to me," she said, following after Ned, smiling when Dorian quickly caught up and wrapped his arm firmly around her- the store they were heading to, was not in the best part of town.

"Bro," whispered Clu, letting Ned, Fi, and Dorian, get a bit ahead, "why didn't you say anything about her hair?"

"You and dad said enough," he shrugged.

"Dude, you've been crushing on her since she came home and haven't done _anything_," Clue lectured, mindful to keep his voice low, "and you know that compliments are the best way to a chick's heart."

"Yeah, well, I think Fi's heart is already taken," he said, dejectedly.

"Don't give up yet, man," Clue encouraged, glancing up to make sure the others were far enough ahead not to overhear. "I mean yeah, her and Dorian had a thing but _had_ as in past tense, bro. They're just friends now."

"They don't act like 'just friends'," Carey pointed out, wanting the conversation to end, wanting to be the one who had his arm around Fi.

"Old habits man, it doesn't mean anything," insisted Clue.

"It just… doesn't feel right, you know?"

"I don't know bro, I still think you should go for it," he whispered.

"Guys, hurry up," called Ned.

"We're coming dad," called Carey. Then more quietly, "Drop it, okay."

"Okay, okay," said Clue, holding his hands up.

The group had turned onto another block that led to the poorer area of downtown, most of the businesses were closed. Dorian tightened his hold on Fi, glancing wherever he thought someone might hide. If he'd realized it was such a bad area, he'd have insisted they drive. Fi squeezed his hand, trying to let him know she thought he was being paranoid and needed to relax. He'd relax when they found and stopped whoever was trying to have her killed, until then he reserved the right to be paranoid. He glanced at an alley entrance and noticed an odd shadow. There was only one place for it to be coming from and there was no reason for a person to be up there. He started to look up when he heard the sound of a gun cocking.

"Get down!" he yelled.

He tackled Fi, the sound of a bullet hitting concrete echoing around them as they hit the ground and rolled into the street. He kept Fi held down with one hand and used the other to push himself up enough to see the building roof. The shooter wasn't bothering to try for a second shot, but was instead racing to the fire escape.

Fi's head was ringing, her body jarred from being tackled and then connecting painfully hard with the concrete. Even so, she had heard the bullet. She prayed everyone else was alright and tried to gather her thoughts. Dorian didn't give her the chance. She had only been on the ground a moment when Dorian hauled her up, half carrying, half dragging her back towards the side walk. Distantly, her mind heard the sound of metal clanging against metal.

"Watch her," she heard Dorian grunt and then found herself shoved forward, someone elses arms wrapping around her, supporting her.

"Fi, are you alright?" asked Ned.

She looked up to see his scared face and realized he was who Dorian had tossed her to, "I'm fine-"

"Thank God," he interrupted, pulling her into one of his famous bear hugs, with no intention of letting her go anytime soon.

"God Fi," said Carey, his voice strained, "that bullet hit right where you were standing."

"I'm fine," she insisted, Ned just tightened his hold on her. "Was anyone else hurt?"

"No, we're all fine. The guy was after _you _Fi. Should we, like, call the police?" said Clue.

"No, let Dorian handle it," ordered Fi, a surprising tone of authority to her voice.

The others nodded, not really liking the idea, but too frightened to argue. The group stood in silence, Ned still holding Fi in a death grip, Carey and Clue squeezing her shoulder every so often as if to reassure themselves she was there and alright. Fi, to her relief, had managed to gather her thoughts and force herself into a facade of calm control. It wasn't the first time she had been shot at and at least this time the person had missed her. Finally, Dorian reemerged from the alley way. He made a straight line to Fi and pulled her from Ned.

"Are you okay? He didn't hit you?" he demanded, cupping her face.

"I'm fine, Dorian," she said, her voice soothing- she could see the panic and rage warring in him.

"Did _I_ hurt you?" he asked, concern and fear in his voice.

"I told you Dorie, I'm fine," she insisted, though in truth she was a little banged up.

"Fiona," he said sharply.

"Baby, relax please," she pressed. "I'm going to have a few bruises but I'll live. All in all, it could have been worse."

Dorian studied her a moment more before pulling her into his arms, "Thank God! Did you call the police, love?"

"No, I figured you'd want to go through the company," she said, attempting to pull away from him and failing.

She suppressed a sigh, she was fine. However, like with Ned, Dorian wasn't holding her for her sake but for his own, so she didn't press it.

"Good, I've already spoken to Will. They'll have people here in ten minutes. We should get going."

"Wait, like won't they want to talk to us?" asked Clue, confused by how they were going about this.

"No, at least, not for a little while. We'll probably hear from them in a couple of days," he lied, keeping Fi firmly against him with one arm as he lead them away.

"Did you catch the guy?" asked Carey sharply before Clue could protest his confusion anymore.

"No, he got away," said Dorian, his tone catching Fi's attention.

"Dorie?"

"Later," he whispered so only she could hear, squeezing her shoulder.

"We should go to Molly's place after this," said Ned, his voice tight.

"Why? I thought you all wanted to set up," Fi pointed out.

"Fi, it wouldn't be fair to the others to tell them over the phone," explained Carey.

"We aren't telling the others anything," said Fi, the tone of authority returned.

"Fi, they, like, gottta know," insisted Clue.

"No, they do not. I'm fine. No one is hurt. The company is heading the investigation. All telling them will do is cause panic _and_ distract everyone during the wedding. I am _not _ruining Jack and Gabe's wedding day. If you don't want to keep it a secret I won't ask you to, but I do expect everyone to wait until after Jack and Gabe leave for their honeymoon," explained Fi, brooking no room for argument- it also helped that she was magically persuading them. "Ned, I understand if you don't want to keep it from Irene as long as she understands I don't want anything said for a while yet."

The others were surprised by the sharpness and authority with which she gave the orders. Will had said she was a cutthroat businesswoman but they'd had a hard time viewing Fi that way. Suddenly it wasn't so difficult.

Fi was relieved when the others didn't press the issue, though the tension coming off them was palatable. Closing her eyes, and trusting Dorian to prevent her from crashing into anything, Fi did her best to soothe them. They didn't deserve the stress that came with her life and she didn't need Jack suspecting something was wrong. By the time they'd reached the liquor store, the guys were laughing and joking again.


	23. Chapter 23

**Read, Review, enjoy please =) and no I don't own it.**

Fi stood up from her desk, rubbing at her headache, and made her way to the window. She had managed to determine which symbols were which parts of speech, now she just needed to translate them. She just couldn't bring herself to work on it anymore tonight. She really didn't want to bring herself to work on anything else at all. She sighed, wrapping her arms around herself, a slight shiver running through her. She'd almost died today. This time hadn't been a test- a size up- like at the track. This had been _real_. She felt another shiver run through her. It was one thing when she almost died on an assignment but when someone was _actively_ trying to kill, when they had gotten so close to success… It was different then. It didn't seem to matter how many times it happened, either, it always left her feeling shaken up. She owed Dorian her life, again. She had to find a way to clear him, because, right or wrong, she loved that man and she wasn't sure how much longer she could bury her heart. Fi felt a pair of strong hands settle on her shoulders.

"You're shaking."

"It's been a long day," she said, turning her head to look at him.

"Aye love, it has," he agreed, cupping her face with one of his hands, gently brushing aside a stray strand of hair.

"I'm tired of people trying to kill me Dorie, of trying to hurt the ones I love," she said, her voice cracking slightly.

Dorian nodded in understanding and gently turned her the rest of the way towards him, tucking her petite frame against his large one.

"I wish I could change it for you, sweetheart," he whispered against her hair. "I just thank God you're as strong as you are."

"I'm tired, Dorian. I'm just so tired, and it _never_ ends," she told him, not caring that she was whining.

"I know, love," he said, wishing there was something more he could say to comfort her- it wasn't right, she deserved a break, she _needed _a break.

Fi sighed, and pulled back from Dorian's embrace, she couldn't fall apart.

"What didn't you say earlier?" she asked, as he walked over to the chair she had by the fireplace and picked up the throw blanket. "You said you didn't catch him but there was more to it than that."

"Do you really want to get into this tonight? Because I talked to Will and there are a couple things that don't add up, love," he said, wrapping the blanket around her, and rubbing her arms in hopes of easing her shivering.

"Putting it off won't change anything," she replied wearily. "What do you know?"

"I didn't catch him but I did recognize the shooter… It was Kyle Monahan," he finished with a frown.

"But… but he only takes orders from…" Fi trialed off and tried to steady her breathing, this was _not_ good.

"I know, love. He would only have come after you if Charles Grey had ordered it," he agreed, wanting to pull her into his arms again- she seemed so fragile right now, and she was under so much strain, how much could she take before she broke?

Fi forced herself to take a deep breath and calm down. She was alright, she could handle this. She didn't have a choice but to handle it. She forced her emotionless Priestess mask into place and when she looked up there was no trace of the panic and betrayal she was feeling inside.

He hated it when she did that.

"You said there was more?"

"We've managed to trace back some of the funds used to target you, we still need to confirm a few things but, it would seem, they point back to Jonathon Price. And, well, after seeing Monahan, I think we'll find our guess about Price to be accurate."

"Because life wasn't complicated enough…" she sighed. "I'm assuming Will wants to play this close to the belt?"

"Yes," he said, nervous at how calmly she was taking things. "Fi?"

"How is Will taking it?"

"He's… furious, but managing… Fiona? Talk to me, what are you thinking?"

"Nothing," she sighed, tossing the blanket back onto the chair. "Nothing that can't wait, anyway. Especially since you should be getting back to the guys. I'll be fine."

"Fi," he said with forced patients, "you can't make yourself fine just by saying it over and over again."

"Yeah?" she said, heading towards the door. "Watch me."

Carey looked up as Fi and Dorian walked into the room and felt his breath catch. She was wearing a long black satin nightgown with a slit that went most of the way up her thigh. To make matters worse, it left most of her back uncovered _and_ it clung in all the right ways. Fi disappeared into the kitchen with Dorian, and Carey felt somone kick his leg.

"You trying to kill the flies, Bro?" asked Clu with a smirk.

"Shutup," he hissed.

"I'm just saying, man-"

"You're not saying anything, until you've made a move on Annie," Carey countered, quirking an eyebrow.

"Not fair dude," he sighed.

"No, _that's_ not fair," moaned Carey as Fi came back out, holding a cup of tea.

"Have a good time, guys. I'll see you tomorrow. Try not to be too hung over," she smirked. Then, giving Dorian a kiss on the cheek, "Night."

Dorian watched her saunter off, knowing she was unaware of the way her hips swayed when she moved. God, she was going to be the death of him if she didn't have a change of heart soon. The doorbell rang.

"That'll be Jack," said Ned, moving to get the door, oblivious to the two men lusting after Fi.

* * *

Fi jerked upright, panting for air. She closed her eyes against the spinning room and a moment later threw herself out of bed. She reached the toilet just in time to hurl. Finally, the nausea passed and she moved to brush her teeth, trying to gather her thoughts. What had she been dreaming about… Arrie had been there… Arrie had died… _They _were there… What did it mean? She'd dreamt about Arrie's death so many times before but something was different this time, something important too, but the more she tried to remember the quicker it faded. Sighing, she gave up and made her way back to the bedroom. It was four a.m. and there was no way she was going to get back to sleep. Sliding on her Robe, Fi decided to try and get some work done but stopped when she saw the t.v. was on and realized Jack was still on the couch, awake.

"Jack?"

"Fi?" he said, jumping in surprise, "what are you doing up?"

"I could ask you the same thing. Have you been up all night?"

"Yeah," he sighed, raking a hand through his hair.

"Jack?" Fi said concerned, sitting on the couch with him and wrapping the blanket around her. "What wrong?"

"Nothing's wrong, exactly," he said, politely muting the t.v.

"Then why are you sitting out here in the middle of the night- nervous?"

"No… Well, yeah, but it's a good nervous. Don't worry about me Fi, I'm fine," he told her.

"No you're not," she insisted, frowning. "Come on Jack, talk to me, what's going on?"

"I'm just thinking… or rather trying not to think," he shrugged.

Fi resisted the urge to shake him, couldn't he just give her a straight answer, "Thinking about what?"

"Everything's changing," he told her, worry lines creasing his forehead.

"That's what life is- constant change, everyday. That isn't always a bad thing," she pointed out.

"I know, Fi… Do you ever…" he sighed, shaking his head. "Never mind."

"Don't do that to me, Jack. Come on, do I ever what?"

"It's… weird."

"Hello. Have you forgotten who you're talking to?" she asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Yeah, but you're not into that stuff anymore," he smiled, relief clear in his tone. "How do you know?" she smiled mischievously.

"Fi?" he frowned.

"I'm kidding. But my point is, regardless of hobbies, past or present, I'm good with weird, so ask me."

"Do you ever wish you could do something over again? I don't mean to change it but just to relive it, simply for the joy of having that moment again?" he asked, feeling idiotic.

"All the time," she told him sadly.

"Mom's just about given up touring and soon she's going to be getting married; Carey's has his own music career now; Clue's almost always traveling nowadays; Annie's joining up with Carey for his next tour; you… you cut us all out of your life a long time ago, and I'm not saying that to be mean, I don't even think you're aware you did it but it _is_ true; and tomorrow I'm getting married, then, in six months, we'll be moving to New York. I know it's supposed to happen and that it's good but it's a little sad too. It's never going to be the way it was and the reality of that is coming in hard and fast," he explained, relieved to talk about it.

"And it'd be kind of nice to have some of those old moments back?" she pressed.

"Exactly," he sighed, running his hands through his hair.

Instead of answering him, Fi leaned over and wrapped her arms around her brother.

"Fi?" he said confused, as he hugged her back.

"You're going to be a _really_ good husband," she told him.

"Um, thanks," he said, awkwardly patting her back, she didn't let go.

"_And,_ a really good dad. You're good man, Jack."

"Fi, are you alright?" he asked, feeling concerned.

"You're a good brother, too. I know I'm pain, Jack, and I give you a hard time but I'm really glad I had you growing up."

"I love you to, sis," he smiled.

It wasn't often his sister got sentimental, especially in the past few years. However, she was still the same Fi, which meant when she got sentimental and emotional and sweet, she went all out. Fi kissed his cheek and then pulled back.

"I _am _sorry if I made you guys feel like I was cutting you out of my life, it wasn't intentional," she told him starting to get up.

Jack grabbed her hand and pulled her back down, "Why didn't you tell us about Arrie?"

Jack watched his sister tense up as all traces of emotion vanished. It was like she had suddenly become a robot. He didn't like it. It certainly wasn't healthy.

"What do you know about Arrie?" she asked, her voice careful, controlled.

Jack explained what Will had told them and reminded her not to be too mad at Will. He had been up against Molly, Irene, Annie, and Gabe, the poor man didn't stand a chance. Fi nodded and went to get up, again. Again, he pulled her back down.

"Talk to me, Fiona. Don't shut me out," he implored.

"I don't want to talk about Arrie," she told him firmly, steadily.

"Why not?" he asked.

"I just don't," she told him, trying and failing to get up again.

"That's not a good enough reason, Fi. Why not?" he said, in his stubborn, big-brother, I'm-not-going-to-let-this-drop voice.

"Because I don't want to cry, alright?" she told him, her voice hard, her face looking like it was carved from stone.

"Tough."

"What?" she said, shock momentarily showing on her face- that was not the answer she had been expecting.

"I said, tough. That's not a good enough reason. What happened with her is a big deal, Fi, and you can't bottle it up and ignore it all," he tried, hoping she might open up- when she was younger, before she left, it would have worked.

"It's not bottled up, I didn't ignore it. It's simply the past Jack, over and done with and I see _no_ reason to hash open old wounds. Let it go," she said stiffly, her tight control on her emotions slipping.

"If it is 'over and done with' then you _should_ be able to open up to your family about it, no problem. Come on Fi, talk to me," he pleaded.

"It hurts to talk, Jack," she snapped, anger and hurt working themselves into her voice. "Do you get that? It hurts to talk about her, it hurts to think about her, most days it still just hurts to breathe because I know she never will again. And just how much it hurts, changes _all_ the time. We could talk and in and hour I'd be fine or I could have a total melt down, I just don't know. Please, Jack, I can't do this right now."

Jack looked at his sister, concern and sympathy in his face, and, reaching out, wiped the pad of his thumb across her face. Fi turned away, and tried to prevent anymore tears from falling.

"Not now then," he said in understanding. "You know, I think cartoons are on."

"Really?" said Fi, grateful for the escape he was offering her. "Find a good one?"

Fi curled up next to her brother on the couch as they watched reruns of the Road Runner, both knowing that in a few hours their families' lives would be very different.

* * *

"I've been ordered to make you take a break," smiled Dorian, wrapping an arm around Fi's waist and pulling her toward the dance floor.

"But… I need to go see to the cake," said Fi, pulling against his hold to no avail.

"Annie's taking care of it, love. Come on," he said, pulling her along. "You've been ensuring every little detail is perfect since the start of the wedding. It's time for a breather so you can actually enjoy the wedding. Besides, it's Gabe's orders and everyone knows you don't argue with the bride."

"Well, when you put it like that," she caved, letting him pull her onto the dance floor and lead them in a waltz.

"You look lovely, Fiona. I can't remember if I've told you or not."

"You may have mentioned it, once or twice or ten times- not that I'm counting. However, I promise, it's not something I get tired of hearing," she smiled.

"Well then, you look lovely," he smirked, twirling her.

"You cleaned up pretty well too," she teased. "…Will and mom will be next. Irene's trying to talk her into a big wedding."

"I bet your mother just _loves_ that idea," he said sarcastically. "I pegged her as a backyard ceremony type with just family and close friends."

"You pegged correctly," she smiled, leaning into him as the song changed.

Ned's booming laugh echoed throughout the reception hall, and Fi tried to push the concerns from her mind.

"What's the matter, love?"

"I'm fine," she lied, trying to make her body relax.

"Wrong. Try again, love."

"I think my… you know, may have been a bit strong," she said, nervously chewing her lip.

"How do mean?" he frowned.

"After… what happened the other day, the guys were so tense, they needed to calm down. So, I gave them a little extra help… only, I think I may have helped a little too much. I'm not even sure they remember it."

"That would be convenient," he said.

"Dorie!"

"Well it would," he defended. "However, I understand why that would make you feel uncomfortable. Still, Fi, you were doing them a favor."

"I know…"

"But you still feel bad?" he surmised.

She nodded into his chest as he directed them to the corner of the dance floor.

"I know how to make you feel better," he said mischievously.

"Oh? How?" He pulled back. "Dorian?"

Then, he kissed her.

Dorian used restraint, forcing himself to keep the kiss slow and gentle. One hand on her waist, he brought the other up and trailed a finger along her jaw line. Fi opened her mouth as she entwined her arms around his neck; delicately, he let his tongue slide forward. He tickled her lip, and teasingly slowed the kiss even more. It worked and Fi pressed herself against him. He obliged her- deepening it, his tongue meeting hers, he let his hand grip the side of her neck while his other slid lower and around to rest on her derriere.

"I suppose that's just another of their old habits?" snapped Carey, raising an eyebrow at his brother.

"No, that, bro, is the official 'you snooze you loose' memo," said Clue, not feeling too bad since his brother had had ample time to do something. "And I think I'm gonna learn from your mistake. Sorry man."

Frowning, Carey watched his younger brother make his way over to Annie.

Dorian finally pulled back so they could go catch their breath, but left his forehead resting against hers. Fi closed her eyes, trying to regain control of her thoughts and her palpitating heart. It didn't help that one of his hands still had a hold of her rear end while the other had slipped to rest over her beating heart.

"I… I should go… go check on the, um, the cake," she managed to force out.

"Or _we_ could go check on the coat closet," he smirked.

She groaned, but forced herself to pull away.

"Fi-"

"Cake. Checking cake," she insisted, her voice strained and, without another word, walked towards the kitchen.

Sighing, he raked a hand through his hair as he watched her walk off for a moment. _That woman's going to be the death of me… Sobering thoughts, think sobering thoughts… Queen mother in a bikini, queen mother in a bikini, queen mother in a bikini…_

Keeping his distance, they both needed the space, he trailed after Fi, keeping an ever watchful eye on her and the guests.


	24. Chapter 24

**Read, Review, Enjoy, please, and no I have no ownership. **

"Hello?" said Fi, answering her phone as she made her way toward her bedroom.

_Is this miss Bryant? _asked the voice.

"Yes it is, whose calling?" returned Fi, sliding out of her dress and kicking off her heels.

_I go by Miss Smith. You asked me to look into some information for you, ma'am. Accounts and such?_

"Yes, of course. Did you find anything?" asked Fi, trying to keep the hope out of her voice as she pulled out a nightgown.

_Not much, Miss Byrant. The accounts are locked up tight. However, I did manage to trace one of the account numbers. Do you have something to right on?_

"One sec," said Fi, dropping the night gown as she hurriedly made her way toward the office- not sure whether to let herself be excited. "Alright what do you have?"

_Account number 71956308 was routed through a number of banks. I traced it from the Wells Fargo location to a generally empty account in the Camons under the name Todd Ennew, though I can find no information for such a person. From there I back tracked it to a bank in Greece under the name Lina Anagno, once again there seems to be no such person, and the account averages around 15,000. After that I traced it back to a Switzerland bank. The account it quite large, containing around 423 million, and it is registered under the name Rasha Torrande; any and all information regarding this woman is locked up tight. I could hack into it but not without leaving a trail and not without a significant increase in my pay. When will my money be deposited?_

"I'm doing that now, it should show in the accounts you directed me to in fifteen minutes," promised Fi.

_If it doesn't you'll be hearing from me._

"Of course. Thank you Miss Smith," said Fi, disconnecting the phone and sinking into her chair. "Where do I know that name from?"

* * *

"Dorian!"

He couldn't determine wether Fi's shout was panicked or excited or both, either way, he didn't waste time reaching her.

"Fi, love, what's wrong?" he demanded, bursting into the room, freezing the moment his eyes landed on Fi.

She was wearing a skin tight, semi see through, corseted black slip that gave her a distractingly large amount of cleavage. He tried to force his eyes to her face but couldn't seem to do it. And as for listening to what she was telling him, well, that just wasn't happening.

"Fi?...Fiona?... Fiona!"

"What?" she demanded, slamming her hands on her hips, and cocking one to the side- definitely not helpful. "I'm trying to tell you something important here."

_Focus, focus, focus… Queen mother in a bakini, queen mother in a bakini…_

"So am I, love," he told her, his voice tight. "I think you forgot something."

"What are you talking about?" she demanded, adjusting her weight and cocking her other hip out instead.

He groaned and closed his eyes. _Jesus, Mary and Joseph-she's going to kill me! _Eyes still closed, he slipped off his suit jacket and held it out to her.

"Please put this on," his voice was still strained.

Fi glanced down at herself, "Uh, oops. I got a call and was in hurry. I, uh, wasn't paying attention and uh…"

"Just put it on," he gritted out, shaking the coat at her.

"Yes, right," she said, taking it from him and trying not to laugh. "Alright, I'm decent."

Dorian opened his eyes and took in how much of her legs were still exposed, "That's debatable."

"Can we get back on track?" she asked, rolling her eyes.

"Maybe," he gave, sitting in one of the chairs and determinedly glaring at her face.

"Miss Smith called me back," began Fi, re-explaining what the woman had told her. "I knew I recognized the name, so I did a little digging. It wasn't easy and I had to really cover my tracks but I managed it- that Smith lady could have done it, she was just too greedy! But anyway Miss Rasha Torrande is now a married woman and you'll never guess who her husband is."

"Jonathon Price?"

"You guessed," she frowned. "How'd you guess?"  
"We've had other evidence pointing towards him, love. I just figured, knowing our luck, this would be the last nail in the coffin," he shrugged.

"Something tells me this isn't going to be the last nail," she said darkly.

* * *

Fi tried to chase after the man in the shadows but everything started to shake. It felt like an earthquake. She stumbled backward and slipped, only she didn't hit the ground. She just fell, farther and farther. Fi screamed.

And found herself in her bed, Dorian shaking her.

"Love?" he said, worry clear in his voice.

She blinked a couple of times and nodded. He yanked her up into his arms.

"You scared me," he whispered into her hair.

She nodded again and froze.

"Fi?"

"Sick," she grunted.

He loosened his hold and she threw herself out of bed towards the bathroom.

* * *

"Do you still feel nauseous, love?" he asked, handing her a cup of tea.

"Mmm-hm," she murmured, taking a sip, a shiver running through her.

Dorian grabbed the throw and wrapped it tightly around her, "What was it, love?"

"A dream," she shrugged.

"I think you mean nightmare," he corrected, tucking stray strands of hair behind her ears. "Tell me about it."

"I don't know what to say about it," she told him, chewing her bottom lip. "It's the same dream I've had over a hundred times now, and yet it wasn't…"

"What do you mean, Fi?" he frowned.

"It was… was Arrie's death, but lately-"

"You've been having these nightmare's regularly?" he questioned sharply. "I thought they'd died down, months ago."

"They did," she assured. "But then I had it last night, and again tonight… only something about was different but when I wake up it's like… like trying to cup water in my hands. It just drains away and the harder I try to remember, the faster it drains, and all I can remember is something _is_ different, wrong… I just don't know what or why."

"Did you get sick last night too?" he frowned at her.

She nodded.

"Fiona," he sighed, cupping the side of her face. "You should have woken me up."

"Just because I have a bad night, doesn't mean you should," she insisted.

"Fiona, love, I was there when these dreams first started. I know how hard they are for you and you shouldn't have to handle them alone. You're strong Fi, but that doesn't mean you always _have_ to be. If you need to talk, cry, be sick, or just not be alone, wake me up," he insisted.

"Dorie-"

"Promise me," he said.

Fi nodded into his hand. Setting her almost finished tea on the table, she leaned forward, burying her face in his chest. Pleasantly surprised, he wrapped his arms around her and leaned back.

"It doesn't seem to matter how many times I see it, dream it, it never gets easier. I hate it," she whispered, finding a sense of solace in his embrace- she had missed being held.

"I wish I could change it for you, love."

"But I _need_ to see it… I think I missed something Dorie, that night… I missed something and maybe if I could remember these dreams… I think it's important," she told him.

"Maybe," Dorian allowed- the idea of her re-immersing herself in the memories of what happened frightened him, he remembered how much it almost destroyed her the first time. "Try to fall back to sleep, love."

* * *

"It was wonderful," said Gabe as she helped get down plate ware for dessert and coffee. "Hawaii is officially my favorite state."

"I'm sure the company had nothing to do with how much you liked it," teased Carey.

"Shush, you," chided Irene with a smile. "Fi, are you alright?"

"Yeah, of course," said Fi with a forced smile.

She should have been fine. It had been a good day and the evening was being spent with the bells and the Phillips at her place. She should be wonderful. She just couldn't shake the bad feeling she had in the pit of her stomach.

"So, which was your favorite island?" she asked, trying to take the attention off herself.

"Um, I don't know," said Gabe, pausing to think. "What would you say Jack?"

Before he could answer the phone rang. Fi felt a horrible pressure in her chest. She did _not_ want to answer that phone. Forcing herself to appear relaxed, Fi walked over to the phone, answered it, and had her world shattered-again.

Dorian watched the color drain from Fiona's face, her mouth hanging partially open, a look of horror on her face. Before anyone could say or do anything, he was up and in front of her. He gripped her arms tight, not sure how much longer she would stay standing on her own- he found himself frightened by how badly she was shaking.

"Fiona, breathe. Breathe, Fiona!" he ordered, shaking her slightly.

She sucked in desperately, her head spinning. Slowly, raggedly, she tried to breath out and but her breath hitched in half sobs. A tear ran down her colorless face. Dorian wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her firmly against himself- supporting her, comforting her. Gently he took the phone from her grip and pressed it to his own ear.

"Hello… This is Dorian Dravinhd… I don't care about that, tell me what's going on… Oh God… Yes, of course, we'll be on the next flight out… Bye," Dorian hung up the phone and wrapped his other arm around her. "I am _so_ sorry, sweetheart."

Fi just clung to him, strangled sobs escaping her. He didn't try to shush her or offer her words of comfort. He just held her tight, while she fought for control. She was strong, she'd pull herself together enough to do what she had to do. When it was over, when she could be a grieving woman and not a burdened priestess, then he would comfort her, tell her to let it out uninhibited.

Fi's family stared on in shocked silence. They wanted to comfort her, to know what was wrong but they couldn't seem to make themselves move or say anything. Instead, they just watched as she sobbed and Dorian held her. After about ten minutes she seemed to be calming.

"Fiona, honey?" said Dorian, keeping one arm wrapped around her, but pulling the other back so he could tilt her chin up.

"I… c-can't," she choked out.

"You can, love, you have to. I know it hurts but you can't fall apart now, you know that. There are things you have to take care of, people who will be depending on you."

"I know," she said, her voice a little firmer.

"You can do this, sweetheart, I promise."

"I have to," she whispered. "Dorian, I…"

"I'm not going anywhere, honey, I promise. I'll be with you every step of the way," he swore, and she nodded, visibly calming. "Go pack our things, love. I'll make the flight arrangements."

She nodded. Dorian pulled back slowly, and kept a hold of her arms as he turned her toward the door. He let go but kept his hands close in case she fell. She swayed a little and it took a few moments but, eventually, she walked out of the room. When she was out of sight, he called the airport. After the arrangements were made he loosened the magical hold he had her family.

"What's going on?" demanded Molly and Jack in unison.

"A good friend of Fi's from back home, Claire Hallings, was killed."

"Oh God," whispered Annie, turning her head in the direction Fi had left. "Oh Fiona…"

"Molly," said Dorian sharply when the woman started to stand. Then more gently, "I know you want to go to her, but that's not what she needs right now."

"Dorian, I know you care for my daughter but she is still _my_ daughter. She just lost a good friend and a shoulder to cry on, _my_ shoulder to cry on, is exactly what she needs."

"Molly please," he tried, not wanting to have to resort to magic again, "it's more complicated than that. Fiona is the executor of Clair's estate. When we get to England she is going to have to handle everything and it's going to be hard on her… It's going to be Arrie all over again, and she won't be able to handle it if she falls apart now. If you go to her to try to comfort her now, she _will_ loose it. Please, if you want to do what's best for her then give her the space she needs to keep it together until this is all over. Please?"

"Mom," intervened Jack, "all he's ever done is keep Fi safe, protected, and that's what he's doing now."

Molly gave Dorian a hard look, "Don't make me regret this."

"Is there anything we can do?" offered Gabe.

"Just lock this place up when you head out," he said standing up and calling as he left the kitchen, "Sweetheart, we have to leave soon, are you almost finished?"


	25. Chapter 25

**Hope ya'll enjoy the chapter, hope ya'll review... Don't own. **

* * *

"May our sister know peace and may we remember patience until we see her again," intoned Fiona, blowing out her candle, her sisters following suit.

Fiona focused on her breathing as her coven, one by one, came forward and placed a white rose on Clair's shawl. Heather was the last to come forward.

"I c-can't, Priestess," she whispered, looking to Fiona for strength.

"You can, my child," she assured, reaching forward to grip the girl's empty hand. "Your twin is gone but you remain. You can and will find the strength to live for the both of you, I promise. You still have your sisters, they will not abandon you. _I_ will not abandon you, Heather."

Fiona pulled her hand back, leaving Clare's blood-fire amulet in the grieving girl's hand. Heather stared at a few moments before nodding and clenching it tightly in her fist. Hand shaking, she placed a red rose amongst the white.

"My twin…" she whispered, before turning away and returning to her place in the circle.

Fiona slowly lowered her own white rose and tied the shawl around the flowers, creating a bouquet. Gently, she lifted the bouquet, held it out, and floated it to the center of the circle. It spun slowly, one tear escaping down Fiona's cheek, and suddenly it was burning. It didn't take long for the flowers and shawl to incinerat, a ball of ash floating where the Final Remembrance had once been. Carefully she lowered it down into the vase that was resting on the ground in the center of the circle. Heather came forward, sealed the lid, and stood with it. After a moment or so, she silently turned and walked away. The rest of the coven followed in two's, in twins. Fiona let out a sigh when they were all out of sight. Dorian stepped out of the trees.

"Honored Priestess?"

Fiona closed her eyes, slowly the blue returned to her hair and when her eyes opened they were no longer black but her traditional brown. The world spun. Dorian was quick enough to catch her, and gently lowered her to the ground.

"You need to rest."

She shook her head, "I need to prepare for the company's funeral tomorrow, and the family one after that. And I still need to finalize the estate… Take me home? The quick way? I'll worry about the car later."

"Of course Priestess," he told her, standing, lifting her in his arms as he did so.

Shadows began to swirl around his feet, slowly rising up, encompassing the two of them. When they dissipated, Fiona and Dorian were gone.

* * *

Dorian parked outside the hall where the company was holding Clair's funeral but caught Fiona's hand before she could open the door.

"There are people in there who want you dead, Fiona. People who to unravel the powers that binds our world and claim it for themselves. People who need you out of their way to do that-"

"Dorie, we still don't have absolute proof-"

"Fiona. You will not leave my side, not even for the ladies room," he said, his tone leaving no room for argument. "Understood?"

"I'll be good, I promise," she sighed.

"Alright," he nodded, looking somewhat relieved, especially when Fiona patiently waited for him to come around and let her out.

She gripped Dorian's arm tightly as he led her to the building, grateful she had him to lean on.

"Ready?" he asked.

"Does it matter?"

"I suppose not," he agreed, and opened the door.

They were met with absolute silence. The Vercunantise was here, and with the traitor. Head held high, a mix of authority and disdain on her face and in her bearing, Fiona made her way towards the center of the room. She was disappointed in her people. She was the Honored Priestess, the Vercunantise, and they would remember. Her eyes turned entirely black, the blue washed out of her hair as it turned the brightest shade of white, the tattoos adorning her body- the ones that could be seen- seemed to become even blacker. Slowly, she turned in a circle taking in the looks of fear and respect on her people's faces. She stopped when she'd come full circle.

"Has tragedy made us forget our ways?" she demanded, the Ancient accent of the Vercunantise tingeing her words as they echoed throughout the cavernous room.

The reaction was immediate. Every occupant in the room fell to one knee, their fisted left arm across their heart. It didn't escape her notice, however, that Charles Grey, Jonathon Price, and several other council members were slightly slower in their reactions. To calm herself, she counted backwards from ten, forcing herself to remember that she had to play the game right.

"Rise, my children," she commanded, releasing her hold on her inner power.

As her traditional human appearance returned, Dorian discreetly tucked her arm back into the crook of his elbow. She took advantage of the gesture while she waited for the dizziness to pass.

It didn't take long for the council members to make their way towards her. She suppressed a smirk. They definitely weren't pleased with her display of power. She was not one to be tamed and it was beyond time they remembered that.

"Fiona."

"Charles."

His eyes narrowed, "I am a Councilman, Fiona."

"I'm aware," she smiled pleasantly. "I was simply following your lead."

"Of course… Honored Priestess," he forced out.

"Shouldn't we be starting soon, Councilman Grey?"

"Dravinhd, should not be here," hissed Jonathon price.

"Lord Dravinhd… Oh honestly," she snapped at their scowls, "you are the ones who insist on the formalities of titles in a private conversation, there's no need to pout just because it's coming back to bite you, Councilmen. Now as I was saying, Lord Dravinhd is here as my bodyguard, my guest, and as a fellow mourner, with my permission and my blessing. It would do you both well to remember, despite your personal desires, that he is not a condemned man."

"Not yet," replied Charles Grey, his face tight, his eyes burning. "It is something we need to address while you are here, Fio- Honored Priestess."

"Agreed, Councilman Grey. However, now is neither the time nor the place. We are here to mourn the loss of one of our own. Speaking of which, we've wasted enough time," she declared. "Dorian?"

He obligingly led her into the adjoining room and to her seat on the stage, trying to suppress a smile, "Bravo, love."

"I have no idea what you are talking about," she said, the corner of her mouth curving up.

"I'm sure you don't," he chuckled, taking a protective stand next to her seat.

"I'm just getting warmed up too," she told him smugly, and a moment later Fiona was gone and the Vercuntise was in her place. "I'm done playing by their rules."

* * *

Dorian carried an exhausted Fiona from the car. She had maintained her Vercuntise form the entire funeral, and while it had made quite the formidable impression, it had also weakened her, a lot. Despite his worry about her well being though, he couldn't help but smile. Arrie's death and the accusations against himself had damaged her, changed her, but she was starting to come back- with a vengeance. And heaven help whoever got in her way.

* * *

Fiona was beyond exhausted. She just wanted it to be over. She walked over and placed a lily on her friend's coffin. Three funerals and she had yet to be able to grieve. She stepped back and blinked dry eyes as the box was lowered into the ground. She barely even remembered the events of this funeral, it was all just a blur and she so desperately needed it to be over with. As the attendants began to drift away, Fi determinedly made her way towards Clair's parents and brother, grateful for Dorian's hand on her back.

"Mr. and Mrs. Hallings, Mr. Hallings," she greeted, her voice dry. "I am so sorry for your loss. If there is anything I can do…"

"Oh, my dear, you've done so much for us already. Handling her estate, the funeral, we… we could have never…" Mrs. Hallings broke off, crying, burying her face in her husbands shoulder.

"Clair always spoke so highly of you, Miss Phillips," said Mr. Hallings, his voice strained. "Now I understand why. Thank you for taking care of… everything."

"My sister wanted you to have this," said the younger Mr. Hallings.

Fi nodded, and took the shoebox he offered. The group stood in an awkward silence for a few moments before the Hallings slowly left, and Fiona went to speak with cemetery director. She was almost done.

Fi climbed into the car and slumped in her seat. All she wanted to do was sleep for the next year.

Dorian gently brushed the back of his hand along her cheek, "At least it's over now, love."

"Thank God!" she sighed. "I don't have anything left in me."

Before he could comment her phone rang.

"Phillips," she answered, her trepidation clear in her voice. "… I'm on my way."

* * *

Fiona stormed into the Council's headquarters, her fury evident, "Where is he?"

"Honored Priestess," began Grey, his tone placating, "why don't you calm down and-"

"Councilman Grey!" she said, her voice cold and steady. "For once in your life do yourself and everyone else a favor and shut up. I am in no temperament to endure your simpering idiocy today. The _entire_ Council has lied to me and withheld vital evidence. You have broken your own laws, which is grounds enough to have each and every one of you suspended, and I assure you the idea is more than tempting, so I advise you all not to push me any further. Councilman Strant, come with me. The rest of you, I expect you all here when I return."

"And when do you plan on returning?" asked Grey, his tone wary.

Instead of answering, she turned on her heel and strode out, Dorian at her side frowning, and Strant racing after the two.

"Honored Priestess," he began when the door shut behind them, licking his lips nervously.

She cut him off, "Where is he being held?"

"Holding cell four, Honored Priestess," he answered immediately.

"I want everything you have on this case, and heaven help you if I even suspect you've held anything back," she warned.

"Y-yes, Honored Priestess," he stammered. "F-follow me."

"Love," hedged Dorian, when Strant left them to return to the Council Hall, "I understand your frustration with the Council, but they are still powerful."

"I'm aware," she said, her tone clipped as she began to empty the boxes of files.

"Fiona," he pressed, straining for patients, "change takes time."

"Your point?" she demanded, her focus clearly on the files.

"My point is, you should be a little more careful with how much you incite them," he snapped.

"Dorian, my twin and one of my sisters were both murdered and the rest of my coven is in danger, the Council wants you executed, there's a price on my head, Dregs are disappearing, and the Company is interested in my mother and I have no idea why, I am done playing nice!"

"Dammit Fiona! I'm not asking you to play nice, I'm asking you to play safe! I won't lose you because you _reacted_ instead of _acted_!" he yelled back. "It is my duty to keep you safe, but you aren't making that any easier. You _need_ to trust me, listen to me. I need you to be more careful! I'm having to protect you from _you_ more than anyone else!"

Fiona turned to glare at him, "I will not back down on this, and no amount of yelling from you will change that. My mind is set, so you can either help me or I can do this myself."

"You're an infuriating woman," he scowled, sitting down next to her. He sighed, "The next time you decide to fly off the handle, could you at least give a guy a little warning, love?"

"I'll see what I can do… Dorian, I have to play hardball on this, I just _know_ it, in my gut, you know? And I need you with me."

"I'm always with you, love," he told her resignedly, grabbing one of the folders.

The two spent close to four hours scouring over the rather gruesome information regarding Clair's murder before they were ready to interrogate the suspect. The interrogation itself lasted for nearly three hours and was a trial for the two's already low patients, especially since the little headway they made incriminated Dorian- again. To make matters worse, despite their utter fatigue, the two still weren't done. They needed to examine the crime scene, and it was the longest process yet.

* * *

"Love, are you ready to head home?"

"No," she answered running a hand through her hair in frustration.

She was missing something, but what?

"Fi, the evidence, the crime scene, it…"

"Points to you, again," she replied, her voice devoid of emotion.

"I didn't do this."

She nodded. What kind of idiot tries to plant a murder on a man who wasn't even in the country at the time the crime occurred... An idiot who was too set on his course to turn back.

"Dorie? When did you last have your dagger, for certain?"

"At our engagement party. Why do you ask, love?"

"And you had it locked in your safe in the office, right?"

"Yes. Fiona, we've been over this, before. What are you getting at?"

_God, I've been such an idiot!_

"I need you to take me back to the Council's headquarters."

* * *

"Dorian," said Fiona, pausing outside the doors to the Council Hall, "do you trust me?"

Dorian suppressed a groan. This was never a good way to start a conversation, it invariably meant she wanted to do something he wasn't going to like.

"You know I do, love."

"I need to go in there alone."

"No."

"Dorie-"

"No, Fiona."

"You said you trusted me."

"I do, love," he smiled, knowing she wasn't going to like the next part. "It's the Council I don't trust."

"Dorian," she groaned. "I need to go in there alone and I need you trust me when I tell you, that nothing is going to happen to me tonight. Please."

He frowned at her. Her expression told him she wasn't going to back down on this. And the fact that she was pleading told him that she really needed him to do this but she didn't want to order him. He groaned.

"Please, don't make me regret this, love."

"Thank you," she told him.

Then, to his surprise, she went up on her toes and kissed him. It was quick and chaste but still, it was a kiss, on the mouth, initiated by her.

Fiona turned away, squared her shoulders, and, with an air of authority and power, strode into the Council Hall. It was long past time she listened to her heart.

* * *

Fiona leaned against the kitchen wall, while Dorian opted to sit at the table. She knew his patience was running out. She hadn't said a word since she came out of the Council Hall. Arguing with them hadn't been easy, but she'd put her foot down in the end and there was nothing they could do. And, quite frankly, it made her nearly as nervous as the prospect of talking with Dorian about it. She owed him so much.

"Dorie?"

He looked up.

"I've been an _absolute_ idiot."

"Fiona," he started but she held up a hand to stall him.

"Please let me finish. I have been stupid, so stupid, and I don't deserve you," she told him.

She made her way over to him and, to his shock, straddled his lap. Then she kissed him, deeply.

"But I want you anyway."

"Love, you've always had me," he assured her, wrapping his arms around her waist.

"You're such a good man, Dorian. I don't deserve you," she reiterated, resting her head in the crook of his neck. "Tonight, I did what I should have done from the start. I declared your innocence to the Council and abolished all charges against you. A public and formal apology will be issued to you tomorrow. All of your rights, and accounts have been reinstated to you, too."

She started to cry. Gently he tilted her head back up and cupped her face, wiping away tears with his thumbs.

"It's alright, love," he tried to comfort.

"No, it's not!" she insisted. "I was _so_ stupid, and horrible to you, Dorie, and you deserved so much better. I'm so sorry it took me so long to come to my senses, and I know I don't deserve your fogiveness-"

"Fiona, Fiona! Sweetheart, stop!" he kissed her. "Marry me."

Fi started to cry in earnest, "I don't deserve you."

"Is that a yes, love?"

She nodded, and wrapped her arms around him, "I love you."

"I never doubted that, sweetheart."

* * *

Fiona stood up, the opened shoebox in her shaking hands, and made her way into the bedroom. Silent tears were streaming down her face. She sat on the bed and shook Dorian.

"Dorie, wake up! Dorie I need you to wake up!"

"Fi?" he muttered, groggily.

He pushed himself into a sitting position against the headboard and tiredly rubbed at his eyes.

"Dorie?"

"I'm awake. What time is- Baby, what's wrong?" he demanded, catching sight of her face.

"I-I opened the shoebox," she choked out, holding it out to him and trying to not to lose it, completely.

"Alright," he said slowly, hoping for a further explanation as he took the box.

"It's that st-stupid b-bottle cap collection!" she said, losing her tenuous grip on control. "Th-the one I lost t-to her in that c-card game, wh-when we f-f-first started at the c-company. She's g-gone, Dorie. Sh-sh-she's g-gone."

"I know, honey," said Dorian, pulling a now sobbing Fi into his arms. "Just let it out."


	26. Chapter 26

**I'm sooooo sorry it's been so long! Part of it was just life getting in the way- holidays, a wedding, job hunting etc... I also happen to own a Dell that hates me! It kept crashing and eating anything I wrote! My dad had to wipe it and reload everything like three times and it still gets twitchy but now I have several flash drives so I shouldn't lose anymore work, thank God! I hope you enjoy it. I hope you don't hate me for taking so long. And I really hope you review it- I'd really like to know how my fight scenes came off. **

**Also...**

**Zach- I'm glad you're enjoying it so far, hope this chapter holds up.**

**lucious-inuson- that's so cool how you knew the right stuff when you watched it. I never did, still don't and am probably butchering the realities of the wiccan culture, still I'm glad you're enjoying it =).**

** XXlumifan212XX- I'm so glad you enjoy the way I write- if you have any critiques or suggestions on it I'd be glad to hear them. Hope you enjoy this chapter!**

** And... I don't own anything- wish i did, then I could have brought a mac and had this chapter out much sooner (cough* not that I have any bitter feelings towards Dells*cough* none at all! Really!*cough) but since I didn't buy a mac cause I have no money and am therefore stuck with my Dell (i.e. piece of crap!) I clearly own nothing... **

* * *

The boxes Fiona was hiding behind exploded, and she found herself flying through the air heading toward a pile of broken glass. Ignoring the sharp, stabbing pain in her back, she threw her hands out and muttered a few words. A thin fog appeared, hovering over the ground, and just in time. She crashed into it but instead of falling through the white mist, it caught her. She bounced a time or two and then settled. Grunting, she stepped off the make shift cloud just as it dissipated, glass crunching beneath her stilettos- she really wished she was dressed properly. She watched one of their attackers dart across open space- a severe limp impairing his speed as he clutched his bleeding side. Smiling, she threw out her hand. Lightning erupted from her fingertips and the creature collapsed to the ground. She felt something crash into her and she went hurtling through the air again. Her already sore back hit concrete and something heavy landed on her. She grunted.

"You need to pay more attention, love," Dorian chastised.

Fi glanced over his shoulder and saw broken, smoldering concrete where she had been standing moments before.

"And you need better informants," she hissed as he rolled off of her and pulled them behind a large shipping crate. " 'It's just an information pick up.' 'Nothing's going to go wrong.' 'You don't need to worry about changing.' 'You're being paranoid, love.' 'Nothing bad is going to happen.' I hate that phrase! Whenever someone says it, something bad _always _happens!"

"Love, it's rude to mock the person who just saved your life," Dorian pointed out, raising an eyebrow.

"Bite me!" she hissed as another explosion rocked the warehouse.

"Tempting but I hardly think now is the time," he pointed out calmly.

"Funny. My best guess is we have about nine left?" she said, returning to the business at hand.

"I counted ten," he said, reloading his guns.

"Including the one I just killed?"

"No. You're right, that makes nine. Nine incredibly hard to kill Drekavs," he sighed. Then holding out his guns, "You mind?"

Fi held her hands over them and muttered an incantation, they burned silver a moment and then returned to their original black.

"Thanks love. So, what's the plan?"

Fi sighed as she felt the Sai blades come to life in her hands, "We need to separate them, we don't stand a chance against them if they're fighting together."

"Yeah, but how? The only reason that last one crossed on his own was desperation," Dorian pointed out, trying to ignore the stabbing pain in his ribs- he hoped they were only bruised.

"How are you magically?" she asked as another explosion shook the building, awfully close to where they were hiding.

"Not good, I'm almost drained, you?"

"Same, plus a couple of them are wearing some rather interesting amulets," she informed him- he swore. "We're going to have to do this the old fashioned way."

"I hate hunting, I much prefer directly blowing my enemies into smithereens," he whined.

"Me too, baby, but we make do with what we have. You want the upper level or the lower?"

"I want you out of here."

"I'm not leaving you to deal with this on your own," she maintained stubbornly. "I was a field agent for years. You need me for this."

"I know," he sighed. "Can you make it to the upper level?"

"Yeah, be careful," she told him, moving into a crouch.

"You too, love," he whispered, leaning around the side of the crate.

Fi crept forward keeping to the shadows, praying they would come out of this mostly alive. There were stairs and there was also a chain she could climb but both put her in plain sight. She sighed and, remaining in the shadows, drew on her limited magical reserves. Fi shot up from her crouch, soared fifteen feet into the air, and straight through the floor of the second level that ran around the warehouse. Her feet had just hit the ground again when she was tackled to the floor- her Sai blades rolling from her grasp. She bit down on a cry as claws dug into her side and instead looked up into the snarling face of the demon that had her pinned, his pointed fangs coming closer. Desperate, she reached for his eyes- one of the few weak points on a Drekav. Her thumbs pressed against his orbs and she tried to hook them in further hoping to get a purchase with her nails- if she could blind him she stood a chance. Yelling in pain but unwilling to surrender it's pray the demon dug his nails further into her injured side. Fi pushed harder, and felt her nails slide in but didn't stop there. She needed to do as much damage as she could. Ignoring the twisting of her stomach as dark liquid poured down over her hands, she continued to press and twist and dig her thumb into its sockets. The creature yanked back, freeing itself of her hold, screaming as it covered its bleeding eyes. She pulled herself free, and dove for her Sai. She gripped them in time and rolled into a standing position to face off against the monster.

It had lowered its hands though blood continued to poor down from empty eye sockets. It wouldn't stop it but it did give her a better chance. Fi rushed forward. Hearing the sound of her feet, the Drekav raced forward as well. Ducking under its outstretched claw she thrust her weapon forward. It sank into the creatures thigh. Calling on fire, she channeled it through the Sai. He yelled and his leg buckled. Unfortunately, he threw a fist as he was going down and caught a lucky punch on her injured side. White hot pain shot through her and she fell sideways, the need to throw up hitting her. Ignoring it, she turned back to the creature, knowing she was running out of time- others would be joining it. Pulling on the strength of the earth she brought her blades down, hearing the sickening sound of one snapping its back while the other severed its head. She groaned, pulling on elemental magic didn't deplete her reserves like traditional witch magic but it did require more energy, and she was already exhausted.

She turned at the sound of running and cursed. Two were coming at her now. She couldn't take on two at once… She didn't have a choice though. Ignoring common sense, she ran to meet them head on.

She was on her fourth Drekav now, and she wasn't sure she'd be able to win. Yelling, she lunged forward her blades sinking into its shoulders. She groaned as it just gave her an irritated look and then gripped her wrists, she didn't have the strength to pull free. It raised its foot pressing it against her stomach. The creature kicked out at the same time it released its hold on her. Fi went flying and crashed into the ground rolling against the railing that encased the second floor. She saw Dorian fighting and winning against one of the creatures. She also saw a pipe sticking out of the ground. A desperate plan forming, she waited for the creature to come at her again. It didn't take long. As it lunged at her this time she forced them both over the railing. They were speeding toward the pipe. Calling on air, she forced the creature down at a faster speed at the same time she heard a gunshot- she hoped that meant Dorian had killed his foe.

"Dorie!" she called out desperately.

His eyes widened in fear, his magic was almost completely gone. He didn't have the power for much more than a fireball. Gritting his teeth he formed and threw one at her. It her side at the same time her Drekav was speared and, to his relief, it knocked her off course enough that she missed the pipe by inches. She hit the ground hard nonetheless and didn't get up. Raising his gun, he fired off three shots into the creature's head to be certain it was dead. Quickly reloading, he limped his way over to Fi. He looked around nervously. He had just killed his fifth before saving Fi, but he wasn't certain how many she had taken out. Gently, he turned her over, there was a large, nasty, egg forming on her head. And there was a lot of blood. He wiped at her cheek where the worst of it was and discovered long gouges. One of them had clawed her face.

"Fiona? Love! Come on, I need you to wake up," he said gently patting her uninjured cheek.

She wasn't waking up though, and he wasn't in much better shape. He'd lost a lot of blood, and things were spinning when he moved too quickly. He wasn't sure how they were going to get out of this. He didn't know how many, if any, of the Drekav were left but he couldn't just leave them here to harm others. He also knew he wasn't up to much more of a fight, and Fi was out for the count; which, of course, presented another problem- how was he going to get her out of here. He wasn't sure he had the strength left to lift her let alone carry her any distance. That's when he heard footsteps. Dread filled him as looked up. It wasn't a demon that burst around the corner.

"Thomas?" he asked, relief flooding through him- Thomas was a Blood-Brother and Dorian trusted him almost as much as he trusted Fi.

"You look like hell, mate," he replied nonchalantly as he took in his battered friends and the dead demon. "A Drekav? They don't usually act alone."

"They didn't. It was an ambush. There were twenty total."

"Twenty!" he gasped, shocked. "How are you still alive?"

"Dumb luck, mate, dumb luck," he sighed out, his head feeling worse by the minute. "I don't know how many Fi got exactly- there could be three left."

Thomas closed his eyes a moment, "No, they're all dead."

"Thank God," breathed Dorie. "We need to get out of here. She took a bad blow to the head and isn't waking up."

"She looks like she had a lot more than a bad blow to the head," Thomas commented dryly, typing something into his phone. "And you don't look any better- all you've got going for you right now is that you're conscious."

Dorian didn't bother to comment as the rest of his Brotherhood filed in. He smiled as he heard several oaths.

"My thoughts exactly," he said as Thomas came forward and lifted Fiona carefully into his arms. "How did you know?"

"That parts a little confusing," answered Thomas unhelpfully.

Two of his other Blood-Brothers bent by his sides and, pulling his arms over their shoulders, hauled him to his feet. To his relief, they supported most of his weight.

"A friend of your Priestess- she said her name was Annie- astro-projected to us," explained Eric from his right.

"How?" he asked as they helped him limp toward the door.

"No idea mate, we're still trying to figure that one out," said Paul from his left.

Confused, Dorian shook his head and immediately regretted it- everything started spinning.

"Woah, easy there Dorie. You gonna be okay? You gonna make it to the van?" asked Eric, sounding worried.

"Sure," he mumbled, taking another step with them, except the room was still going in circles.

"You sure, mate? Cause you look like you're about to pass out," Paul told him.

"I don't pass out," he growled out, forcing himself to take another step.

"I don't know," said Paul eyeing Eric. "Maybe you should carry him?"

"I don't need-" Dorian started but then everything went black.


	27. Chapter 27

Okay peoples, I know it's been forever, life's been a bit of a roller coaster for me for a while now ( I really hate it when reality demands my constant attentions) and I've had some serious writers block. I think I know where I want things to go now though, plus I'm determined to get back to this. I always hate it when there are long updating gaps on stories I'm reading, and I'm starting to feel really guilty about doing that with my story. But before I continue this story I want ya'lls opinions (like I said serious writers block). And since it's been such a wait I figure ya'll should get what you want. There's kinda of some happy personal stuff for the Phillips's coming up like the holidays and Molly's wedding and Fi's wedding and such before Fi and Dorie get back into the the thick of things. So my question is what would ya'll prefer:

A) Just kinda skip over all that with everyone knowing it happened and get back into the actual plot and action-y stuff?

B) Actually write out some holiday stuff and wedding stuff and fi and dorie coming back after being gone for two months and the family finding out the there engaged and all that other mushy family stuff for the next few chapters with very little content that actually serves the plot? (I would possibly manage to insert some plot serving/ developing info but I can't guarantee that and it would be minimal at best)

So please message me with your opinions/ votes, majority wins, voting ends three days from this post and four days after that I'll have another chapter or two up, I promise. So in a week the story will be back on track. Thanks.


	28. Chapter 28

Okay so my brain started working agian, and I came up with this, it's mostly mush with hints of the drama/ action to come. Hope you enjoy. I'm pretty sure this is my longest chapter too. Would love some reviews [nudge, nudge, wink, wink ;)]

A fewthings first though,

a. things become... heated up between Dorian and Fi in this chapter. I hadn't meant to go as far as I did but was having too much fun, so to be safe I'm rating the stuff that comes right after the elevator scene M, and you can skip if you like but remember after the M scene there's still more stuff, so careful not to miss the ending of the chapter.

b. As I am sure you are all aware, I own nothing. *sigh* Sad day, well moving on...

Lastly- ENJOY!

* * *

Dorian came to slowly, feeling groggy. He suppressed a groan and tried to think but it felt like he was wading through sludge. Where was he? What exactly had happened? Where was Fiona? The last concern helped to clear his head a little more and Dorian sat up, only to slump back down.

"You shouldn't be trying that so soon, you're still weak," said a scratchy female voice he didn't recognize.

Dorian jerked upright and didn't allow himself to fall back this time, "Who are you?"

The voice sighed, "You're as stupidly stubborn as your Priestess, and as paranoid."

"Who are you?" he repeated, and swung his feet to the floor.

"A healer, and please, you need to stay in bed," she explained, impatient.

"Turn on a light," he ordered.

"It's only going to give you a headache," she insisted.

"Turn a light on!" he ordered, his patients gone, as he started to stand.

"Alright, alright, just stay seated for now?" she snapped back, a moment later the light flickered on.

Dorian winced slightly as the brightness did, as warned, make his head start to throb and studied the healer. She was older, and bone thin, her grey frizzy hair mostly held back by a scarf. Then he looked around the room and felt himself relax. He was in one of Thomas's guest bedrooms.

"How is Fiona?" he asked.

"Already up and about, despite my orders to rest," harrumphed the healer.

"Fi doesn't take well to orders," he smiled.

"I noticed," she frowned. "And I doubt you're any better."

"I'm worse," he laughed. "How long was I out for?"

"Near a week."

"And Fiona?"

"Your woman woke up three days ago, and don't start getting your knickers in twist. Thomas has had a least one of your brotherhood guarding her at all times. Much to her frustration," smiled the healer.

"Good. Where are my clothes?"

"Oh no. I made that mistake with your Priestess. As soon as she was dressed, I lost any chance of getting her to rest," snapped the older woman crossing her arms.

"Madam, you never had a chance of getting her to rest in any case," he pointed out.

"Regardless, I'm not making it easy on you. I want you in that bed resting. No clothes!" she said with a nod for emphasis as she crossed her arms.

Dorian shrugged and stood up.

"Oh Lord," exclaimed the older woman, determinedly staring at his face. "You really are worse that her! On the chair, Thomas said they should fit."

Dorian tried not to laugh as the disgruntled woman slammed the door behind her. Then he sank back on the bed. God, he was tired. Taking a deep breath, he forced himself stand back up and made his way over to the chair. The clothes fit well enough, though the shirt was a little tight. Slowly, he made his way to find Fiona.

"As far as I understand it, you're supposed to stay in bed," came Thomas's amused voice from the top of the stairs.

Dorian glared. Thomas laughed.

"Come on," he said, "I managed to convince the Priestess to break for lunch, she's worse than you. We're all in the kitchen, but if you pass out again, mate, I'm not catching you."

Dorian scowled but followed his blood brother down the stairs. He was never going to live down the passing out thing.

Thomas paused at the bottom of the stairs, "There's something you should know about how we found you?"

"Oh?"

"Dorian!" exclaimed Fi, as she threw herself into his arms. "You were starting to worry me."

"Just a few bumps and bruises, love," he replied setting her back down, and brushing her hair aside to see the the bruised bump it hid. "Are you alright? How's your head?"

She shrugged, "recovered."

"Mm-hm," he frowned. "If you ever try something as reckless as that again, I may just throttle you! You could have impaled yourself!"

"My options were somewhat limited," she snapped.

"And what if I hadn't had enough magic left for that fireball," he replied, his arms crossed in frustration.

"Then I would have impaled myself," she shrugged. "I took a calculated risk. If I hadn't that Drekav would have killed me!"

Before Dorian could retort, Paul interrupted, "If you too wouldn't mind putting your lover's spat on hold for a moment, lunch is ready."

"We aren't finished discussing this," he told her, heading toward the table.

Fi rolled her eyes, but followed him and sat down.

"So when are you going to explain what's going on, Dorian?" asked Thomas. "The Priestess won't tell us anything."

Dorian raised an eyebrow at her. She shrugged.

"The less they know the safer they are," she explained.

Dorian sighed and considered a moment, "Fi is right. For now, it's best if you don't know what's going on."

"For now," agreed Thomas, clearly unhappy with his blood brother's decision. "So, do either of you know how a witch managed to astroproject to us?"

"What are you talking about?" asked Fi, this being the first it had been mentioned.

"Apparently, Annie astroprojected to my brotherhood and let them know we were in trouble, speaking of which, how would she even know that?" asked Dorian, perplexed.

"Annie and I are… connected in a way. Neither of us fully understands it. We think it has something to do with having worn my ring for a few years. Anyway, she would have been able to sense something was very wrong. I was… panicked, and I don't usually feel that way. That feeling alone would have made her determined to figure out what was wrong and send us help," explained Fi. "As to how exactly, I'll have to ask her. She may have tried to force a vision, or maybe taro cards, or… I don't know. I'm just glad she did."

"Yes, but that doesn't explain how she astroprojected to us," pressed Thomas.

"Um," started Fi, not wanting to sound condescending but not knowing what else to say, "astroprojection isn't exactly difficult to understand."

"It's not the power they're confused about, love," explained Dorian. "It's the fact that my brotherhood is cloaked, she shouldn't have been able to find them in the first place, let alone astroproject to them. Actually, as far as I'm aware she didn't even know I had a blood brotherhood."

"She probably didn't. Still might not. She just knew we needed help and magically forced a way to find it. As to how she got past your all's cloaking, I don't know. Annie can be… powerful, when she's desperate," Fi shrugged. "I'll ask her about it when we get back to the states."

Speaking of which, love, when are we heading back. It's been two months, how much longer can you put your responsibilities there on hold?"

"I can't. Honestly, I was just waiting for you to wake up. We've done what we can here, for now anyway. Besides, Thanksgiving is in a week and Mom's getting married the day after. We have to get back. Actually, I should go make flight arrangements now," rambled Fi.

"Finish eating first," reminded Dorian.

* * *

Fi couldn't help but smile as Molly fiddled with her hair one last time, before moving on to adjust her daughter's skirts, again. So much had happened in just a month, so much good had happened in just a month it almost didn't seem real. Fi's family had accepted their re-engagement with nothing but congratulations and happiness. Jack and Gabe had announced their pregnancy, to which Molly had fainted. As happy as her mother was, Fi suspected a part of Molly was still slightly in shock over the fact that she was going to be a grandmother. Clue and Annie had started to become more than just friends and it was about time too, at least according to Jack and Irene. Then, of course, there was Molly and Will's own wedding, and Fi couldn't remember the last time she had seen her mom so happy. To top things off, Dregs had stopped disappearing, Fi's workload was manageable for once, and she had the council in hand- finally. And here Fi stood, getting ready to walk down the aisle of her own wedding, after which she and Dorian had two weeks in Aspen to enjoy their honeymoon, and celebrate Christmas together as man and wife. Life was good and Fi was truly happy for the first time in over a year. She was finally getting her happily ever after. As the music started, cuing the bridesmaids' entrance, Fi tried to ignore the feeling in the pit of her stomach that told her things were too good and the ax was getting ready to fall.

She was allowed to have good and happy things in her life, wasn't she?

* * *

Dorian watched as Gabe and Annie, dressed in flowing silver gowns with blue Iris and white rose bouquets, made there was down the aisle on the arms of two of his blood-brothers, Paul and Thomas. Finally, they reached the stage and Dorian felt his stomach tighten as he anxiously waited for Fiona. A moment later he felt his breath catch- she was beautiful. In a gown of white silk and lace, her hair- now brown with blue stripes- curled and pinned up and partially hidden by a long lace veil, which, though it blurred her features some, could not hide the smile her face could barely contain, his Fiona made her way down the aisle on Jack's arm. And as her brother handed her over and the Priestess- one of her coven sisters- began the ceremony, Dorian couldn't help but think how lucky he truly was.

* * *

(Approaching the M Scene)

Fiona stood next to Dorian in the private elevator that would take them to the hotel room in which they would spend their wedding. Fiona forced herself not to nervously run her fingers through her hair, which now cascaded down her back in a mass of curls. Although she had kept her wedding dress on, Molly had helped her unpin and brush out her hair before leaving the reception. She stopped herself from tightening her hold on Dorian's hand. She loved Dorian, she trusted him but… it was still her wedding night. Despite the fact that they had lived together on multiple occasions, even slept in the same bed, despite the fact that their friends and family believed otherwise, Dorian had respected the fact that Fi had wanted to wait until they were married. But as excited as she was, Fi couldn't help but be nervous, too. After tonight she would never be the same. She wondered if it was going to hurt as bad as everyone said.

They were one floor away from their own when she was suddenly swept off her feet. Fi stared at Dorian in surprise.

"Traditions should be observed, love," he smirked, and a moment later carried her off the elevator and into their hotel room. Dorian glanced at the table which had campaign, bowls of chocolates and strawberries decorating it and a box, which he knew held her negligee, "Would you like-"

"No."

Dorian smiled and carried her into the bedroom, kicking the door shut behind him. Slowly, he lowered her to the ground and Fi felt her stomach tighten up even more, briefly she wondered if she was going to be sick. She wouldn't look at him. Using his knuckle, he nudged her chin up and tried not to smile at the endearing blush that stained her cheeks; it was so rare that she let her vulnerable side, her innocent side, show, even to him. Nervously she bit at her bottom lip, waiting for him to make the first move needing him to make the first move. Giving into his smile, Dorian used his thumb to pull her lip free.

"That's my job," he murmured, leaning in and capturing her lips with a kiss.

Fiona had been expecting the passion, rough and desperate in its need, that usually ruled their kissing. Instead Dorian had surprised her, kissing her slowly, gently, sensually. One hand cupped her face as his other slid to her lower back, pulling against him. Fiona could feel herself being swept away in his caresses, his kisses, as her hands slipped up around his neck, holding herself to him even more tightly. She let her tongue slide forward catching at his bottom lip, slipping in to taste him. She let out a moan of satisfaction as he did the same, her nerves melting away as if they had never been. How could she have ever been nervous?

Dorian slowly pulled away, just slightly, and trailed feather light kisses down her neck as he moved a hand to firmly grip her hip. He continued to travel down as he kissed her, gently pressing his lips against the swell of one of her breasts. She gasped, enjoying the feel of his stubble scraping against the tender skin, his teeth nipping, his tongue soothing as he enjoyed the cleavage created by the corset she wore under her dress. He let the hand gripping the back of her neck slide down to cup her other breast, squeezing lightly, he let his thumb graze over where he knew the most sensitive spot would be if her dress and underthings weren't in the way.

"Dorian," she gasped, her hold on his shoulders loosening as pleasure jolted through her.

Satisfied, he spun her around and, brushing her hair over a shoulder, began to kiss her neck. Fiona moaned again and felt her dress began to loosen, realizing he was undoing the buttons that ran down the back.

Dorian growled against the back of her shoulder, "You couldn't have picked a dress with a zipper?"

"Where would be the fun in that?" she teased but let out a gasp a moment later at the feeling of his teeth pressing into her soft skin.

"I'm not a patient man, sweetheart," he whispered.

Fi heard material ripping and the gown fluttered to the floor, pooling around her feet. Before she could comment the pressure from her corset disappeared as it fell to the floor the ties clearly singed.

"That's better," he growled, pulling her against him, kissing the sensitive skin behind her ear, his rough hands exploring the skin now exposed.

Dorian moved one hand down low, cupping her, pressing the palm of his hand into her.

"Oh…" he pulled her earlobe into his mouth, suckled, "… God"

Dorian chuckled as she slumped into him and released her, only to lift her into his arms. Fi wrapped her arms around his neck, kicking her heels off while she kissed along his jawline as he carried her to the bed. Dorian eased her onto the soft comforter and smiled at his wife's form, clothed only in lacy bra and panties and thigh high stockings. He could feel impatience burn through him but pushed it aside, he wanted this to be right for her. But first, he needed to lose some of his own clothes. Dorian let his suit jacket slide off to the floor and began work on his tie.

Ready for a chance to get her hands on him, Fi sat, her hands going to his belt. She pulled it free and moved to the buttons on his shirt as Dorian slid out of his shoes and socks as best he could without the use of his hands- they were too busy with Fiona, sliding down her back, over the curve of her bottom, gripping her thighs, the roughness of his hands against her soft skin turning them both on.

When she had the shirt halfway unbuttoned, Fi smiled and ripped, buttons flying everywhere.

"That is better," she smirked.

Fi lifted herself higher onto her knees to slide the shirt off of him. Then slowly began working her way down, kissing his torso as she went, reveling in the feel of his skin under her exploring hands.. Dorian felt the urge to push her back on the bed and take over, to kiss and touch and taste, to take. Instead he forced himself to hold still, allowing her to have her fun. Slowly, ever so slowly she worked his zipper down, wanting to get to his hardness, but not wanting the moment to go to quickly- she'd never get this first back. Finally she unhooked his pants and let them slide to the floor. Before she could have her fun with his boxer's too, Dorian removed them himself.

"Oh my," she whispered, reaching for him.

Instead, Dorian pushed her back on the bed, holding himself over her. Once again, taking her mouth with his but this time with the rough passions she was so use to. His hands massaged her breasts and she longed to feel his hands on her without the barrier of her bra. But before she could push him in that direction, Dorian began moving down her body, kissing and stroking and thrilling as he went till he reached one of her stocking clad legs. Slowly, ever so slowly, he rolled the stocking down her leg, kissing as he went. When both were bare he began making his way back up his hands mouth stroking and tasting as he went, pausing to tease the tender flesh of her inner thigh, working his way closer and closer.

Dorie… please," she gasped, not sue what she was asking for.

Chuckling, he continued his way up, until he was once again holding himself over her. Smiling she reached up to cup his face but he caught her wrists instead, pinning them over her head with one hand, his strong grip ensuring she could not pull free until he let her. She tried, but he kept her arms firmly trapped above her head.

"Dorian," she whimpered, torn between desire and fear, unable to decide which she was feeling.

As if able to read her thoughts, he smiled wickedly and said, "A bit of both, my love."

"But-"

"Nothing wrong with a little fear," he murmured, resting a hand over her pounding heart, tightening his grip on her as she squirmed. He lowered his hand down, his fingers trailing lightly along her skin, to finally cup her, pressing his palm into her once again, "especially when it makes even more ready for me."

Fi felt herself blush and squirm beneath him even more. He chuckled and returned to kissing her. His free hand slipped under her back, unhooked her bra. Grateful for the lack of straps, he pulled it easily free and tossed it aside. Pausing to admire the sight, he started to loosen his hold on her wrists.

"No," she moaned before snapping her mouth shut, her eyes widening, clearly shocked by her own request. "I didn't mean-"

"Oh, but you did, sweetheart," he smiled, pleased with her sort-of request and looking almost wolf-like as he tightened his hold on her, once again securely pinning her arms- she moaned, in protest or delight, she wasn't sure.

He used his free hand to stroke the side of one of her breasts and she gasped. While his hand continued to fondle and tease her, the rough pad of his thumb pressing against the most sensitive spot, he lowered his head to her other breast, taking her budded nipple in his mouth, suckling. Her back arched underneath him as sensation coursed through her, but Dorian held her firmly in place as tongue and teeth continued to play.

She continued to twist and turn under her husband as he switched his mouth to her other breast, his free hand sliding down her body, slipping under her panties.

"Dorian," she gasped as his hand found her hidden place and sent pleasure coursing through her. "Oh… Oh…. God…. Oh, Dorie.

Dorian couldn't help but smirk as she became louder, writhing under him, trapped, as the pleasure built to crescendo. And just when she thought it was becoming too much to bear, Dorie pulled her over the edge, and Fi felt sensation and pleasure and power shatter within her as she screamed out his name.

Dorian felt her go limp beneath him, and nuzzled her neck, "Where not done yet, sweetheart."

"I…"

"Ssshh," he murmured, releasing her to locate the thin strips of material that held her panties in place.

Fi felt a slight warmth against her hips and a moment later she knew her panties were gone, singed away just like her corset. She thought it should feel odd to be laying there completely naked his naked form pressing against her but it wasn't, it was exactly right, it was home. Before she could do anymore thinking though Dorian resumed kissing her and all coherent though fled.

His mouth worked its way down her torso, his whiskers tickling her belly, his tongue playing with the jewelry that adorned belly button. And he continued kissing her lower still, working his way over her sensitive hips. He spread her legs wide as he caressed her inner thighs, using his teeth more than his mouth, enjoying the way she wiggled beneath his ministrations. Unable to deny himself the taste of her any longer, he moved up, his mouth closing over her, his tongue exploring.

Fiona moaned, her fingers tangling in his hair, her hips bucking and the pleasure- tension building up once again as he kissed her most intimate place, his fingers kneading her hips and behind. He was slowly bringing her closer and closer to that glorious edge and how she wished he would push her faster and how she wished he would never stop tormenting her. She yearned for the release he would give her and yet she didn't want to lose the pressure coursing and building through her, creating such unbelievable bliss. Oh God, she wanted….

Just when, once again, she was sure she could take no more, Fi felt his teeth come into the play and she was lost. Bucking against him, arching her back, an unintelligible scream-moan, coming out of her as all the build up he had created melted over her like liquid heat.

And as she sank back into the bed, her legs falling back together as he sat up, Fi was convinced her bones had been replaced with rubber. Unable to make herself form words, Fi simply stared up at him dazedly. Clearly pleased with himself, Dorian lowered himself over again and kissed her.

"There's more in you yet," he murmured.

And sure enough as his hands and mouth started moving over her, her body began to respond. And as kissed and stroked and pleasured, she wondered what he intended to do to her this time. Her curiosity was answered a moment later when he slid his knee between her thighs, parting them once again, and she felt him pressing against her.

(M Scene over)

Several Exhausting Hours Later

"Are you alright, love?"

"Never better," she murmured, convinced she was half- dead and wishing they hadn't stopped.

"You might change your mind come morning."

Fi shrugged and snuggled into him, "You were amazing."

"Well, when you have the right inspiration," he replied, kissing the top of her head.

"I really didn't do anything though," she frowned.

"Am I complaining," he raised an eyebrow as she looked up at him.

"But-"

"You have the rest of our lives to play with me, for now you should rest."

"I don't want to rest," she told him, sliding a hand down his chest, over his tight, hard stomach.

He chuckled but caught her hand, moving it back to his chest, "No, baby, we're done for tonight. Besides, I'm worried about you not being able to walk tomorrow as it is."

Fiona looked at him, frowning, "Your joking right?"

"Mostly," he shrugged, gently pushing her head back onto his chest. "Go to sleep, Fiona."

* * *

One, Very Peaceful, Year Later

Fi made her way out of the bedroom, clothed only in the dress shirt her husband had been wearing the night before, her hair, all brown now, slightly wild.

"Morning, love, I'd hoped you'd sleep a little longer," said Dorian with a frown from the chair he occupied in the living room.

"I'm fine, Dorian, I… is that coffee?"

"Yes, and the answer is no."

"I know," she whined, making her husband smile, "I just really want it, I'm _allowed_ to really want it."

"Are you crying?" he asked suddenly, his amusement vanishing.

"No," she insisted, swiping at the moisture running down her cheeks.

"Come here, baby," he said, setting aside his coffee, and holding out his arms for her.

She shook her head stubbornly, "No."

"Honey, I'll just come get you," he pointed out.

Her shoulders slumping in defeat, Fi made her way over and climbed into her husband's lap, feeling significantly better as his strong arms wrapped around her. In fact, she only sniffled for a minute two before the tears stopped instead of going on a full crying jag, as had become habit of late.

"Better?" he asked, smugly.

"Yes," she snapped.

He just smiled and held her close; one had rubbing her back, "Would you like me to get you tea?"

"No," she pouted. "I may get some later."

"No you won't," he corrected her. "If you need anything, _I'll_ get it. _You_ will rest."

"I really wish you'd stop babying me so much," she told him trying to sound angry, instead she sounded petulant.

"Tough," he told her pleasantly. "You know, love, I wouldn't have to be the tyrant you make me out to be if you would just do as you're told."

"Bite me," she hissed.

"I already did, several times during the course of the night, in fact; which is why you should be resting."

Deciding not to comment, Fi fell quiet and Dorian followed her lead, hoping she might drift back to sleep. No such luck of course.

"I wish you had taken me back to Aspen for our Anniversary," she whined, knowing she was being childish and unfair to Dorian, but not caring much.

Dorian just smiled, finding his wife's personality changes endlessly amusing, and said, "I told you, I won't have you traveling in your condition."

To his relief, she didn't cry, as she had the last time he had told her.

"Condition?" she scoffed. "God, you make it sound like I'm terminal."

"No, but whether you like it or not, sweetheart, you are fragile," he replied resting one of his large hands on her rounded belly. "And the which-doctor and midwife are on my side, or perhaps I'm on theirs? Either way, love, the nature and immensity of your powers combined with the fact that they thrive off of your own energy makes pregnancy very dangerous for you, you know that. In fact, they suggested to me that you have an abortion."

"What?! I could never-"

"I know, baby, I know. Calm down," he soothed, giving her a kiss. "I know how you feel about that which is why I wouldn't allow them to do it, but that means you're stuck being, as you put it, 'babied' for as long and as much as your doctors and I see fit. Darling, as much as you don't like them, the precautions we take are to keep you from miscarrying or delivering early, he's only six months along; he isn't ready to come out yet. Besides, if we're not careful to keep you in good health, this pregnancy could kill you. Fiona I don't want to gain a son and lose my wife."

Dorian unconsciously tightened his hold on her.

"… I know, I don't mean to be like this, so … so…."

"Crazy, hormonal, pregnant," he supplied.

"Yeah, I'm sorry."

"You don't need to be," he assured his wife.

"But I am anyway. Gabe was _never_ this bad."

"Gabe didn't have vast magical powers magnifying and worsening the symptoms of her pregnancy. Speaking of, were you sick this morning, love? I couldn't hear you."

She grimaced slightly, "I'm still sick every morning, you know that. I just had the fan going."

"Hot flashes?"

"Mm-hm."

"Are you hungry?"

"No," she murmured. "Tired, very tired… I don't want to sleep any more."

"Your body needs it, love" he told her, rubbing her back again.

It wasn't long before she drifted off, and he felt their son come to life in his mother's womb. Dorian smiled, content. Little did he know, in less then a week, all hell would break loose.

* * *

Hope you all enjoyed, hope you all review.

Oh, if your curious this is what I pictured Fiona's wedding dress to look like, only with buttons up the back-

www.

dressale.

com/

classic-silk-sheath-wedding-gown-with-detachable-long-sleeves-and-clingy-long-dress-p-517.

html

only with no spaces but fanfiction wouldn't let me put it in without them.


	29. Chapter 29

xxlumifan212xx:Thanks! That's so cool to hear! Glad you're enjoying it.

I own nothing :(

Enjoy, R&R, please

It was the day after Christmas and Dorian was cleaning up the leftover mess, trying to be quiet so as not to wake Fi. They'd had everyone at their place both Christmas eve and day; Fiona had loved it, especially getting to see her nephew rick, but it had exhausted her. Unfortunately, rest was a concept the woman had a difficult time grasping, he swore she was turning him grey. Dorian tied the now full garbage bag and was setting it down when he felt his pocket vibrate. He pulled out his phone and checked the message, then made his way to the door.

"I was worried I might wake her if I rang or knocked," explained Will.

"I appreciate it, want some coffee?" Dorian asked, leading him into the kitchen, noting the strain and worry on the man's face.

Oddly enough, the two had formed an unexpected friendship, once Will had been convinced the Council could not be trusted.

"Thanks."

"Of course. So what's wrong?"

"A lot," Will sighed, sinking into a chair at the kitchen table. "God, I don't know where to begin. Things are about to get real bad, real fast, Dorian."

"Bad for whom?" he questioned, setting two steaming mugs down on the table and sitting himself.

"Technically, everyone, more so for us and those that matter to us, especially for Fiona," replied Will, his distress over this fact clear.

"Fiona can't have bad right now," Dorian whispered, dread pooling in his stomach. "Her body can't handle it; our son, certainly, can't handle it. How bad are you talking about Will!"

"You know how surprised we were by the council acquiescing to Fi's rule? Well," Will paused, running his hands over his face and through his hair, "they weren't. Most of them weren't, anyway. They've been quietly double crossing us for the past year, and the few who would be on our side are too scared of the others to go against them. I believe, and my research supports, that this… sect of the Council has been operating behind the scenes in secret for centuries. Slowly gaining power and knowledge, until they were ready to strike."

Dorian sat stunned for a moment, unable to process what he'd just been told, finally, "How didn't we realize this sooner?"

"I don't know, I've asked myself that so many times this morning… they're good Dorian, unbelievably so. But then they've had years to become good, until Fi there was never a Vercanuntise strong enough to go against them, there was never a witch willing to stand. Now, when there finally is one… they're just too good."

"We'll have to be better," he murmured. "We should never have stopped looking into those disappearances… Fi and I have been trying to continue to track money trails with no success, it all keeps turning up cold. It explains why the contract for Fiona's life was nullified, they needed to focus more on covering their tracts. Do you have any idea what their planning?"

"Only rumors, none of it can be substantiated," Will told him.

"Rumors are better than nothing," Dorian insisted, pinching the bridge of his nose. "At least, it would give us a place to start."

"It's bad, Dorie."

"How bad?"

"They want power. I'm not sure who their ringleader is, but rumor has it they've been trying to find, have found, a way to cast the Vercanuntise out of Fi, and bind it to a magical object, so they can use its power," Will finished, disgust in his tone.

"But that would…"

"Kill Fi, yeah," answered Will. He studied Dorian for a few moments, worried by the man's lack of reaction and what it meant, "Dorian, preemptively killing the Council won't stop this, at least not permanently, it's bigger than just them, it has to be. Besides, they have rights, if you execute them without a trial, without absolute proof of their treason, Fiona will be forced to sentence you to execution for murder. Could you do that to her, force your pregnant wife to become a widow by her own hand? On top of everything else she has to deal-"

"Enough Will, you've made your point," Dorian snapped.

"So you won't-"

"I was never going to," Dorian interrupted, raking a hand through his hair.

"You mean you honestly didn't consider simply assassinating them?" asked Will, raising an eyebrow skeptically.

"Of course I considered it," sighed Dorian. "Violence may be embedded in my nature, my magic but it does not rule me, Will. I am not the animal I was born to be."

"My apologies," conceded Will sincerely. "I was out of line."

"Not necessarily, it's good to be reminded of what I'm capable of, of the line I walk," Dorian whispered quietly, distractedly. Shaking his head, "How do they mean to cast the Vercanuntise out of her, I mean it's not a possession, this force was reincarnated within Fi, it's as much a part of her as her own DNA. It doesn't make sense."

"I don't know, like I said this is all based off of rumor, I can't prove any of it. But like you said, it gives us a starting point," Will answered. "The question is, though, what do we tell Fiona?"

Dorian opened his mouth to answer when a scream echoed around the apartment. The two men raced toward the bedroom, fear coursing through them. Dorian burst through the door first to find Fi, curled in on herself in a ball, in the center of the bed, shaking. He had almost reached her when she let out another God-awful scream. The crystal vase on the dresser shattered. Dorian flicked out his hand, and the shards hissed into white smoke before disappearing altogether. He climbed up next to Fi and pulled her quaking form into his arms, cradling her. She screamed.

"Come on, baby, wake up," he tried to soothe, stroking her hair. "It's just a dream, I'm here now, wake up for me."

She gripped his shirt, shaking, whimpering, one arm wrapping around her abdomen.

"Come back to me now, baby, I've got you. You're alright Fi, just wake up for me, please, baby," he murmured again, pressing a kiss to her temple as he rocked her.

Fi let out a whimper, curling into him, "Dorian?"

"Yes, I'm here, I've got you," he whispered in relief. "That's it love, it's over, now, you're awake, safe."

"My baby," she cried.

"He's right here, sweetheart," he assured, pressing one of her hands against her swollen belly, covering it with his own- their son gave an obliging kick.

"Oh God," she sobbed, burying her face in his chest. "They were taking him, killing him, and I couldn't stop them, Dorie."

"It was just a dream, honey," he whispered, tightening his hold. "It's over now, he's safe, you're safe. I promise."

Fi fell silent, crying quietly into his shirt. Dorian just held her as her shaking slowed to a stop, rubbing her back.

Will stepped back into the room, setting a cup of tea on the bedside table. He held up ten fingers. Dorian nodded, grateful as the man turned to let himself out. Finally, Fi's crying came to a stop.

"Are you feeling better, love?" he asked, loosening his hold enough for her to look up at him.

"Not really. God, Dorie, I've never felt such fear before," she told him.

"It's over now. It was just a dream."

"What if it wasn't?" she whispered.

"We'll be careful but, love, your magic is sporadic and unreliable at the moment, at best it's dangerous for you. The chances that this was a vision are small," he replied but seeing her continued worry, added, "_however_, we will be careful. Love, we will keep our child safe."

"Promise?"

"I promise," he said, standing up with her, and carrying her to the bathroom. "Why don't you clean up and I'll fix the bedding. The witch-doctor will be here soon."

"What?" she demanded, as he set her on her feet, clearly unhappy.

"Baby," he said gently, cupping her face. "You blew up the vase, and there's a fair number of other broken items strewn about the room. You know how dangerous using magic can be while you're pregnant. She's just going to make sure you both are alright."

"We're fine!" she snapped. "We don't need a checkup. I don't want one."

"I didn't ask what you wanted. Fiona, this isn't an argument you're going to win, so you might as well acquiesce with a little grace. Now go get cleaned up," he told her firmly, turning her towards the bathroom, and giving her an affectionate pat on the butt.

She threw a glare over her shoulder before storming in and slamming the door behind her. Dorian chuckled and made his way to the bed. He had just started to straighten it when Fi's horrified voice called out.

"I broke the _crystal_ vase!"

A little while later, Fi forced down the god-awful concoction her witch doctor and midwife insisted was necessary for her baby's health.

"I'm afraid we had to make it stronger than usual, because of the magic your body instinctively used while dreaming. Now, you probably feel a little weaker than normal due to the strain caused by the dream and using magic but a few days bed rest and you'll be fine, don't worry," assured the witch doctor. "As for the dream itself, I'm aware you are prone to visions when you sleep but I highly doubt this was one. You're stressed _and_ as an expectant mother, given to worry about your baby's well-being. It is most likely that your powers caused your fears to manifest in the form of a dream. Even if this was some sort of vision your powers are too erratic now to be able to interpret accurately. Don't worry yourself, Honored Priestess, it isn't good for the baby, or for you."

"Now," said the midwife, turning to Dorian, "she needs to drink the potion every two hours for the next 24, I've left enough in the refrigerator. You'll see that she takes it?"

"Of course I will," he replied, ignoring Fi's scowl.

"Then we'll show ourselves out," she replied as they took their leave.

"God, I hate that stuff. And don't look at me like that," she snapped, setting the glass aside. "I'll still drink it."

"I never said you wouldn't," he replied pleasantly.

"Only because you'd pour it down my throat if I didn't," she said, surly.

"Of course," he smiled, tucking her into bed.

"Stop smiling! And what are you doing?" She asked, trying to sit up – he didn't let her.

"Tucking you in," he told her, bringing the comforter up to her chin.

"I don't want –"

"I didn't ask what you wanted. You need to rest. You _are_ going to stay in bed, and you _are_ going to try to sleep," he informed her, knowing that in a few more minutes it would all be moot – the midwife would have added a gentle sleeping aid to the potion.

"She put something in it, didn't she?" Fi sighed.

"Would I let her do that?" He smirked.

"Yes," she huffed.

"It's for your own good, love," he reminded her gently.

She worried her bottom lip, "I'm still scared, Dorie. I don't care what they think, I know in my gut that something's wrong!"

"Then we'll take it seriously and be careful," he soothed, stroking her hair back. "You know your mind and powers better than anyone."

"Thank you," she murmured, the sedative starting to take effect.

"Always," he answered, running his knuckles lightly along her jaw line. "Go to sleep."

"Stay with me," she asked, her eyelids fluttering closed.

"Always," he whispered.

* * *

"Of course, Master," Councilman Grey bowed to the spirit he had summoned. He looked at the loyal Council members who stood with him, then, to no one in particular, "Bring me the dagger and bowl."

One of the faithful scurried off, eager not to displease their leader. He returned a moment later with a pewter bowl filled with a sweet smelling liquid and the jewel encrusted dagger which belonged to Dravhind's family line – two of the jewels were missing. He held the bowl while Grey took the knife and pressed the tip to his palm just under his first finger. He glanced at the spirit again, a niggling doubt making him hesitate. The spirit smiled encouragingly, and Grey reminded himself that this was necessary to seal their agreement. He was being silly, besides showing his fear would make the others question his leadership. Steeling himself, Grey dragged the blade diagonally across his palm. He immersed his hand in the potion, refusing to wince despite how badly it stung. It was with relief that he lifted his hand out and set the blood stained dagger in the bowl instead. Grey turned back to the spirit and forced himself to walk steadily into the circle of candles.

"You have done well," lauded the spirit. "Exactly as I have instructed. Are you ready to seal our bargain?"

"Yes, Master," Grey murmured, holding out his hand.

The spirit took the offering his supplicant didn't know he had made. Agony scoured through Grey, his knees buckling yet the spirit would not release him.

"What are you doing!" He demanded in horror, it felt as if he was being ripped from his own body.

The spirit simply smiled, then grew bright like the tip of a white-hot poker. Grey screamed and slowly the bright light seeped into his wound until it had disappeared entirely and Grey himself was glowing. The light faded, the screaming stopped, and Grey's body rose to its feet. He looked the same except for his eyes, his now bright silver eyes.

"Councilman Grey?" Asked another Councilman nervously.

"No," the voice was smoother, deeper.

"M – master?" Asked another, his voice trembling.

Grey's body smiled as the pathetic humans surrounding it fell to their knees in fear.

* * *

Fi sat on the couch as she forced herself to read the page she had been staring at for ten minutes. There was no reason to be nervous she reminded herself, again. She was safe in her own home, Dorian had made sure of it. Their apartment was practically a fortress. Besides, she told him to go out, insisted she would be fine on her own while he got groceries. It was just that dream. It had made her paranoid. She snapped the book shut, determined to get a hold of herself. Resolving not to think on it anymore, Fi decided to finalize their New Year's plans. She only had a couple days left. Normally her family would all go out but due to the complications of her pregnancy they would be celebrating at Fi and Dorian's. She smiled and caressed her stomach. She was 26 weeks now, and still found it hard to believe. After all, she'd been told she would miscarry in the first trimester, that as the Vercunantise her body could not support pregnancy. In fact, she was the first Vercanuntise to become pregnant. But they were proving the 'experts' wrong. Fi smiled again as her son gave a kick. A moment later, she was drawn from her musings by the footsteps behind her. She turned to look.

"Your back al –" she trailed off, her chest tightening with fear. "Councilman Grey."

"Not anymore," came a soft, sleek voice.

The man looked up, made eye contact. Fear surged through Fiona as the ancient spirit in her recognized his eyes.

"No!" Came the Vercanuntise's voice, tinged with fear and anger, as Fi's arm wrapped protectively around her unborn child.

"Yes," he answered.

"It's not possible," whispered the Vercanuntise's voice again, its presence somehow being there without taking over Fi.

"All things are possible, my Untise," he replied, taking a step closer. "You should have known you could not keep me imprisoned forever. I told you once, long ago, I always keep what is mine. And you, Untise, are mine. You always have been, always will be. No matter what you throw in my path, no matter how far or fast you run. I will always come for you."

"No."

"Come wife, don't you tire of this game we have played for millenniums now," he took another step closer. "Stop trembling, husk."

"Oh, are you talking to me now?" Sneered Fi, unsure where she ended and the Vercanuntise began, at the moment.

"You fear for your child, but it is already too late. My people bought your witch doctor and midwife long before you conceived. They've been steadily poisoning you from the start, without my personal interference you will carry to term but your child will die within hours of its birth."

She shook her head, refusing to believe but having to ask, "Why?"

"Do you think I would allow my wife to bear another man's child?" He hissed.

"I am not your wife!"

"No, you are a husk needed only to preserve my Untise or Vercanuntise as became her title when the elements blessed her as the highest priestess of magic. I wish they hadn't, it's when you turned against me, Untise."

"No, my love," came the Vercanuntise's voice, soft with memory. "I never turned against you, your actions, choices, forced me to condemn you, even when it killed me inside."

"That is the past, it matters not now. I've come for you," he held out a hand.

"No," said the Vercanuntise as Fi stood up.

"Please, I don't want hurt you, Untise, but I will if you don't cooperate," he threatened softly.

"I did not yield before you the first time, nor will I this time."

His mouth thinned, and before Fi could deflect it his curse threw her against the wall. Fi managed to turn herself so she fell on her hip not her stomach. She threw back her own curse, but he deflected it easily and sent her into the mirror over the fireplace. As shards of glass rained down around her, Fi felt the words 'let me' press softly against her mind. Knowing she was no match for this man, she gave herself over entirely to the other soul that shared her body. She had never done it so completely before, and though it was weird being trapped in the corner of her mind where she assumed the Vercanuntise resided, cut off from her senses, she accepted this risk as necessary. She hoped it was enough, hoped that her child survived it.

Fi wasn't sure how long she'd been trapped in the blackness but slowly it started to lift. She blinked, and found herself, once again, the authority of her body. The color drained from her face though, as she realized she was on the ground looking up at Grey, or rather, whatever it was that possessed him.

"You always were a fighter, but this isn't over. You may have won today, Untise, but I will come back for you."

His hands framed her face as he lowered his head to hers, as he pressed his lips to hers. Fi tried to push him away but couldn't. He moved his lips firmly against hers, forcing his tongue inside, swirling it against hers. It made her feel sick. Finally, he pulled away. Keeping her face cupped with one hand, he let the other trail down her neck, over her breast, along her stomach, until finally his hand rested over her most intimate place. He smiled at her, enjoying the fact that she couldn't move. His last curse had been effective. He pressed his palm into her, and Fi couldn't stop the tear that escaped. He brought his other hand down to rest on her belly.

"If it wasn't for this, I'd take you right now, enjoy my right as your husband. Still, this thing won't be in the way much longer," he told her, his hand glowing bright white against her abdomen.

Fi's eyes closed as pain ripped through her. It eased a little and she forced her eyes open to find her assailant gone. She still couldn't move and she couldn't draw on her magic. She tried to fight down her panic as she felt something warm and wet spreading between and down her legs.

* * *

Dorian sat in the hospital, head in his hands when Fi's family rushed in. Molly knelt in front of him, and gripped his arms. He met her eyes. He was pale and hollow. The arrogant, and commanding man her daughter married looked utterly broken.

"Dorian," she whispered.

"I should have been there," his voice was rough, strained as if he were trying not to cry. "She was so pale, and there was so… So much blood. At first, I couldn't find her pulse. They don't know…"

Molly stood up and sat down next to him. She wrapped her arms around him the way she would her own son. He let her.

"She's going to be okay, baby. She's a fighter," Molly tried to soothe, too afraid to say anything about the baby.

How long they stayed like that, neither was sure. Finally, the surgeon came out. Slowly, Dorian and Molly, stood up, unconsciously gripping each others hands.

"I'm so sorry. We did everything he could but it just… wasn't enough."

* * *

Please R&R :)


	30. Chapter 30

Chapter 28

_Hey ya'all, I Know it's been forever, I'm sorry. I am going to finish this story eventually, I promise. Hope you enjoy, hope you review :)_

_P.S. I own nothinh_

_P.P.S. This chap goes a little beyond PG in parts _

_She lay in the grass along the river, it was soft against the skin her robes left exposed. The sun beat against her, the soft breeze just enough to keep her comfortable. It was so nice here, her spot, away from the kingdom, her responsibilities. Just the water's gentle flow, the soft lapping against the shore. A small smile tilted her lips as she lay there, eyes closed, the soft sound of chirping birds almost sending her to sleep. This spot was home… No wait… Dorian was home… Where was she…_

_-Sssshhhh, Fiona-_

_The voice echoed in her head._

_-If you don't stay calm, he will find us-_

_Fi, took a deep breath. It was hard in dreams, to remember where she ended and the Vercanuntise began, especially lately. The Vercanuntise had become so strong that when they slept their subconscious mixed and flowed together so that they almost became one. It was a little frightening when she first started dreaming, but it was worth it. When their minds mixed like this it was harder for _him _to find them, it allowed them to actually rest. _

_-This is nice- Fi thought. _

_-I thought you might like it-_

_They lay back down. _

_-How long do you think we can stay here?- Fi asked._

_ "You already stayed too long," the voice came from right next to her. _

_ She jumped, panic clawed at her, she tried to run but the ground disappeared beneath her, she was falling… She was back where she started, lying on the grass. _

_He leaned over her, kissed her. She fought him. He always let her fight him, he enjoyed it when she fought, enjoyed taking her by force, because it never made any difference. But she fought anyway. _

_ They'd exhausted themselves, unable to fight, to even move as he kneed their legs apart. He had always been more powerful in dreams._

_ "I take what I want, Untise," he whispered, and embedded himself inside them. They screamed. _

* * *

Dorian burst through the bedroom door, desperate to wake his wife. He knew what that scream meant, Deygan had found her! He also knew what that meant the monster was doing to her. And he could do nothing to save her. God, he hated being so impotent. She was his Wife! Dammit, he should be able to protect her from this! But she had to sleep. And nothing they did could protect her when she slept. Not even the Vercanuntise.

He pulled her into his arms, gently despite his panic. She was still recuperating, though he knew the worst of the injuries weren't physical, as her now flat stomach bucked against him as she fought, trapped in her nightmare.

"Wake up, baby," he tried to soothe as he held her close, rocked her. "Please, baby wake up, I've got you… I'm right here, honey, come back to me."

"No, no, stop!" her voice, thin with pain and panic whispered. "Please stop… it hurts."

"Oh God, sweetheart, you have to wake up," he pleaded, though he knew it was useless, Deygan never let her wake until he was finished.

So Dorian did the only thing he could, he held her, whispered to her, and waited, a lone tear making its way down his cheek.

* * *

Finally, finally it ended.

Dorian tightened his hold as she relaxed against him.

"Dorie?" she whispered.

"Yes baby, I'm right here, I've got you," he murmured into her hair.

"Oh God, it hurts," she cried, still shaking, clutching at him.

"I know, sweatheart, but it's over now," he lied as he rocked her-it was never over.

"Dorie…"

"I'm going to put you in the bath, honey," he tried to stall, "it will help ease the pain."

"Please," she whispered.

"Baby, are you sure," he asked, he always asked, because he didn't know how she could want it, how she could stand to have anyone touch her after… but, it was all he could do for her…

"Please Dorian. I need to feel clean, I need to feel you," she assured him, lifting her head to kiss his jaw.

Because she needed it, because he needed it, Dorian laid her back. Kissed her. Slowly he peeled her clothes off, felt a sense of peace start to come back to them as she took his off. He trialed kisses down her neck, pausing to suckle her breasts before continuing down, his hands gripping her hips spreading her legs.

"Love-" he started.

"Don't stop, please God, Dorie, don't stop," she didn't sound scared or fragile anymore.

He pressed his mouth to her, let his tongue soothe and stir her. She moaned, bucked, as pleasure built insider her, warmed her. She let her hands tangle in his hair as he brought her up and up. She let herself cry out in joy as he pushed her over.

"Don't stop," she told him as he lifted up.

So smiling, he rolled them over, lifted her over him, then stopped.

"Dorian?"

"You're in control," he told her.

"I love you," she whispered as she slowly slid herself onto him.

* * *

"Are you sore?" he asked her as they lay in the hot bath together.

"The water helps. I want to go to that Native American sight, I know there are answers there…"

Letting her change of subject slide, Dorian looked down at his wife, the dark shadows under her eyes were like vivid bruises against her pale, gaunt face. She had almost died, then come back to find they'd lost their son, it had almost destroyed them both. She was still recovering, she needed to rest, but he knew she couldn't, Deygan wouldn't let her. He also knew he couldn't let her focus on their loss, or would pull her back under. She hadn't spoken for days when she'd first found out, just retreated into herself. It wasn't until Deygan had started stalking her dreams that she'd come back to him. As much as he wanted to bundle her back off to bed, to rest, he knew she needed the distraction, to be active.

He sighed, "Alright."


End file.
